Forever Tomorrow
by dizzy - in - the - izzy
Summary: Six years ago, she vanished; dropped right off the face of the earth. Tony didn't know what to do, other than raise their child not knowing her own mother. Tiva, established Jibbs, slight Kari & McAbby. AU!
1. How To Save A Life

**Hey all. I've been working on this for a while now, and I decided to post this after Penelope Louise told me she was having a bad day. I sent her this to look over, and she told me she liked it. I was then persuaded to post it.**

**AU, of course. It's kind of confusing, but over time you'll understand what is going on.**

Underlined: Person on the other end of the phone.

_Italics are memories._

**In Tony's POV after the first part.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS or anything afilaited with it. I do own Annabelle Tali DiNozzo.**

* * *

Seven-year-old Annabelle Tali DiNozzo knew many things. She knew that the sky was blue, and the grass was green until summer. She knew that three times three was nine, and that her shoe size was much smaller than her dads. She knew her father's name was Anthony, but everyone always called him Tony. She knew a lot. She prided herself on knowing a lot. She was the smartest kid in her class, and was also the fastest. She was even faster than the boys. She knew all those things.

Out of all of her knowledge, the one thing that should have been known from the beginning wasn't something she could boast she knew. Anyone who knew her would listen to her explain something else she had learned, and sit there in wonder at how this small little girl had grown up not knowing one thing.

Her own mother.

* * *

I watched as my daughter ran around the park playground, playing tag with some kids she knew. Her dark, curly hair was tired up in a ponytail at her request, and she was wearing jeans and a plain green t-shirt. I watched her climb up the ladder to the top of the play structure, laughing. She saw me, and waved. I smiled, waving back at her. Her two front teeth were missing, and it reminded of my third grade class picture.

"Hi Daddy!" She yelled, and I watched as she walked over to the slide. She sat down, and I walked over to the end. As soon as she reached the end, I picked her up.

"Annie." I said, and she giggled. She wrapped her arms around my neck, her laughter filing my ear. If I wasn't already partially deaf in that ear, I would have winced.

"Daddy, can you go down with me?" She asked, looking at me. I looked at the slide, then back at her.

"I can't get up there. I'm too big." I said, and she giggled.

"But daddy! I want you to slide down with me!" She said, and I shrugged.

"We'll have to find a bigger slide." I said. She folded her arms. My phone went off and I put her down.

"DiNozzo."

"Tony! Where are you? I want to take Annie shopping!"

I smiled at Abby's voice, grabbing Annie's hand. She looked at me.

"We'll be there soon. We are at the park."

"Well, hurry! I can't wait to take my favorite niece shopping."

I looked down at Annie, and smirked.

"I bet she's excited to go shopping with you too Abby."

At those words, Annie looked up at me. She shook her head, mouthing no to me. I laughed, and Abby squealed.

"Well, hurry up!"

I snapped my phone shut, and Annie turned to me.

"Daddy, I don't want to go shopping with Aunt Abby. I don't like the clothes she picks out." She complained, and I smiled.

Abby would always try to get Annie to wear girly colors, and skirts. Annie hated that. She would rather wear jeans and a t-shirt, as she was now. She was a tomboy, and hated wearing anything that was too girly in her opinion.

"Come on, you'll have fun. How about this; I will see if Grandma Jenny wants to join you guys. Jenny won't let Abby get you stuff you don't like." I said to her as we walked back to my car. She smiled up at me as I opened the back door, throwing her stuff in and then letting her get inside.

"Yeah!" She said, clapping her hands as I strapped her in. I smiled at her Abby like manner, and moved to get in the car.

We drove to Abby's house, Annie talking the whole way. I smiled back at her in the rearview mirror, watching as she looked around, still talking.

"Daddy?" She asked suddenly, her voice quieter. I looked at her, and I saw she was watching the side of the road. A woman was carrying her sleeping kid in her arms as she walked down the sidewalk, her hand moving up and down the baby's back.

"Yeah Ans?" I asked, using the nickname Gibbs had given her.

"Do I have a mommy?" She asked, and I nearly crashed the car.

In seven years, she had never questioned about her mother. I guess she didn't think about it, or didn't wonder. Abby acted like her mother all the time, and Jenny was so good at it I wondered why her and Gibbs didn't adopt a baby. Annie was always preoccupied with something Abby and Jenny were doing with her for the day, and she never asked me anything about her own mother. I didn't expect her to ask now, while driving to Abby's house. I looked at her in the rearview mirror again, and sighed.

"Yes." I said to her, and she crossed her arms. I saw her brain working, and sighed. The red light changed, and I pushed the car forward.

"Then where is she daddy?" She asked. I felt my insides sink, and my heart ache. I didn't answer her, but kept driving. When we arrived at Abby's, she asked again.

"Daddy, where is my mommy?" She asked as I undid her seat belt. I looked at her and saw she looked lost, and her voice was quiet. I ran my fingers through my hair as I picked her up.

"I can't answer that." I said plainly, and she crossed her arms again. She looked so much like her mother when she did that.

"Yes, you can." She persisted. I shook my head.

"No, sweet heart, I can't." I whispered before Abby opened her door.

--

"_Tony, you can't always eat like that. One day, it will kill you." She said to me, and I smirked._

"_Yeah, or you will first."_

I watched as Annabelle pranced around, showing off her new shoes. She was so excited that Jenny had let her get a pair of Converse that she had been wearing them since she got home. I didn't doubt that she would wear them to bed.

"And, look at his Daddy!" She said to me, running into her bedroom and grabbing something. She ran back out holding a Ninja Turtle backpack. I smirked at it, and she handed it to me. I held it in my hands, looking at the Ninja Turtles. I handed it back to her, and it wasn't long before her interest was elsewhere. She grabbed the TV remote, and turned it on. She jumped across the room and into my lap, settling in and crossing her legs. I wrapped my arm around her small body, and she changed the channel.

"_I can't fit my arm around your stomach." I said, and she glared at me._

"_That is exactly what I want to hear right now. Ugh, when will this end?" She said, rubbing her pregnant belly._

"_Two weeks, at most. And then you can work out all day like you usually do to lose the baby weight." I said, putting my arm over her shoulder. She settled into my side, and she sighed._

"_Yes, only two weeks."_

"Daddy, you never answered my question." Annie said, and I looked down at her. She was watching the TV still; her eyes watching the men on Whose Line Is It Anyway make funny jokes out of hats.

"I can't Ans. I honestly can't." I said again, and she looked up at me.

"How could you not know?" She asked, and I saw the fire in her eyes. Her eyes were a copy of mine, but they had a chocolate brown outline. It was what Abby called the perfect mix.

"I just, can't." I said, letting my head hang. Annie moved in my lap, and she pulled my face up. I found myself looking into my seven year old daughter's eyes, and I could see her mother staring back at me. All of her stubbornness and hard ass had come from her.

"Why not daddy?" She asked, and I sighed.

"Honey, it's a long story." I said, and she shrugged.

"I have time." She said, just like Abby would. I sat back, shutting my eyes.

"You don't have time for this." I said, and she huffed.

"Daddy, I want to know." She said.

"Why? Why all of a sudden you to have to know about your mother? Why now?" I asked, and I didn't mean to sound angry. Nonetheless, Annie didn't flinch.

"Because daddy. I'm the only kid without one." She said quietly, and I opened my eyes. Her eyes were slightly filled with tears, and I pulled her into my arms.

"I'm sorry Annie. I am. It's just…. It's just a long story. And you need to get to bed so you can get up bright and early for school tomorrow. First day in the second grade." I said, and she groaned.

"Will you promise to tell me about mommy when I get home?" She asked, and I nodded.

"I promise." I said, and she held out her pinky. We linked pinkies, and she smiled.

"Okay dad. Tuck me in?" She asked, and I nodded. I picked her up carefully, carrying her down the hall to her room. Her walls were purple, and her bed was green. Her two favorite colors.

I pulled back her covers as she got changed before jumping into the bed. I noticed, with a grin, that she still had on her Converse. She snuggled down under the covers, and looked up at me. She had pulled her hair out, and it was now splayed out across her pillow. I smiled at her, kissing her forehead.

"I want a bedtime story dad." She said, and I shook my head.

"Not tonight. Tomorrow when you get home I'll tell you a story." I promised, and she nodded.

"Good night daddy. I love you." She said, shutting her eyes. I kissed her cheek again, getting up and walking to the door. I put my hand over the light switch, looking at her.

"Night Annabelle. I love you." I said, exiting her room and shutting off the light. I walked down the hall to my room, reaching into the living room and shutting off the light. I left the hall light on so Annie could find her way to the bathroom. I walked into my bedroom, looking at the bed. It always seemed empty.

I got changed and curled up in the bed, my mind working a little more than I liked.

"_You know, one of these days, some old lady in an aquatics class is going to drown. And you are going to have to jump in to save them. Your fancy shoes and _cool_ pants will be ruined." She said to me as we walked back into our office. I sat down at my desk, looking across it at her behind hers._

"_Yeah, and what are you saying, Zee-vah?" I said, drawing out her name. She smiled._

"_Buy some Nikè's."_

I rolled over, looking down at the ground. Sitting there were my old, worn out Nikè shoes. I hadn't bought new ones in ten years. I couldn't bring myself to do it. I had bought those with her, and even walking up to the shoe store brought up too many memories. It was like picking up a photograph. It hurt to look at.

I sighed and turned back over so I was facing the other side of the empty bed. It seemed to get emptier as the years went on, and I would stare at it every night until I fell asleep. And I usually woke up still facing it, but it Annie would usually find her way into the bed. I would smile at her and pull her close to me.

_Her hair fell onto my nose, and I turned away to sneeze._

"_Ha ha." She said, and I glared at her. She was holding Annie, who was only five months old._

"_Can I hold Annabelle?" I asked, and she smiled. She handed me the baby, and I cradled her close. I looked up to see Ziva smiling at me, her eyes glazed over. I reached out and gently touched the side of her face, and she leaned into my touch._

"_I feel so blessed." I whispered, and she opened her eyes to look at me._

"_How so?"_

_I smiled at her. "Well, it sounds cliché, but I got the two most beautiful woman in my life." _

_She smiled at me for that, leaning up and kissing my cheek._

"_Cliché, but romantic all the same."_

"Daddy?"

I sat up, looking at Annie in the door way.

"Yes baby?" I said. She moved across the room, and that was when I saw the tears flowing down her face. I got up, wrapping her up in my arms tightly.

"Annie, what's wrong?" I asked, and she started to sob on my shoulder. I rubbed her back, sitting down on my bed. Her small body shook and trembled, but her sobs weren't loud. She had always been a quiet crier.

"What's wrong Annie? You need to tell me so I can help you." I said, getting nervous. She sniffed loudly, and snuggled her face into my neck. Her next words were muffled, but I heard them loud and clear. As soon as she said them, I moved to lie on the bed and pulled the blankets up to the top of her head. She settled into my arms, and fell asleep. But her words still rang through my head, even after I fell asleep.

"I thought I lost you too."

--

"DiNozzo, do you have your paperwork for me?" My boss, Jethro Gibbs, asked as he walked into the office I shared with my new (well, not that new but I still thought of her as new) partner Michelle Lee.

"Right here. Even got some of next months filled out." I said, and he smiled.

"Good. That means you can get out of here to pick up Annie." He said to me, smiling.

"Right." I said, suddenly dreading picking my daughter up. Gibbs saw this, and like always, asked.

"Tony, what's the problem?" He asked, sounding as if he thought it was just car trouble.

"Well, you see…. How do I say this? Annabelle wants to know about… her mother." I said, and Gibbs stopped. He sat down on the edge of my desk, rubbing his cheek.

"When did this start?" He asked.

"Last night, or yesterday before Abby and Jenny took her shopping. It was out of the blue too." I said, and he nodded. I saw Lee's confusion, but ignored it. She knew very little about the previous person to own her desk.

"Well, tell her the truth. What exactly does she want to know?" Gibbs asked, and I shrugged.

"She wants to know where she is…." I trailed off, and Gibbs's eyes went dark. He looked at Lee, then at me.

"That will destroy Annie." He said, and I nodded.

"I know. That is why I'm just going to tell her about Ziva." I said, and then I saw Lee nod her head as she finally understood. I rubbed my eyes, and looked out the windows. People were still working out, and most of them were the regulars who worked until five. I shook my head, standing up.

"I have to go." I said, getting up and making my way out the door. I got outside and into the cool air, letting the breeze relax me. I sighed as I got into my car, driving to Annie's school. She was waiting out front for me, and when she got inside she looked excited.

"Story time." She said, smiling at me. I groaned inwardly, pulling away and driving back to our apartment. She kept smiling at me the whole drive, her eyes showing her excitement. After running down to her room and putting her school stuff away, she sat down on the floor in front of where I sat, watching me closely. I rested my back against the couch, rubbing my forehead.

"This isn't easy Annie." I said, and she puckered her lips. Something else she got from her mother.

"But daddy, I really want to know about her. What did she look like?" She asked, and I smiled.

"_I can do this."_ I thought to myself.

"Well, you remind me of her everyday. She had long dark, wavy and sometimes curly hair. She was constantly complaining that it got in her way. She usually had it up while working. Rest of the time, it was down and all over the place. You know the color that is around your eyes?" I asked Annie, and she nodded.

"Well, that's the color of her eyes. And even though she rarely showed any emotions on her face, her eyes never told me lies. I always knew what she was feeling or thinking."

"Why didn't she show emotion on her face?" Annie asked, and I smiled.

"Because, unlike you and me, she was a ninja." I said, and Annie smiled widely.

"A ninja? Daddy, you're kidding." Annie said with a laugh, and I shook my head.

"No, I'm not. She was shorter than me, but she could take out guys twice my size. Once when we were wrestling, she flipped me over just by grabbing my hand. I ended up on my stomach with my arm twisted behind me." I said, and Annie smiled.

"Wow. That is so cool!" She said, clapping. She then stopped, and gave me a curious look.

"See, how hard is this Daddy?" She asked, and I grimaced.

"It's harder than you think." I said to her, pushing myself up so I was sitting up straight.

"I want to know more." Annie said, looking around the room. I could see the wheels in her head turning, and then she snapped her head to look back at me. I got an uneasy feeling in my stomach, but I was saved when my phone went off. It was Abby, and she wanted to take Annie out for dinner. I smiled at Annie, and she suddenly got apprehensive.

"She'll be waiting Abby." I said, and Annie fell back flat on the ground. I smiled at her, and she rolled her eyes at me.

"You wait Daddy. I'll have more questions." She said, and I shrugged.

"I'll be waiting."

* * *

**I feel it ended abruptly, but I always think the first chapter of any story I write is left hanging. But, i guess that's a good thing.**

**Just to let you know, don't be expecting an update until probably next week. I'll have the chapter written, but I need to finish Girl Next Door. And Every Little Thing. This is just being posted to let you know what's up next.**

**Reviews please?**

**Izzy.**


	2. In The End

**Oh my good golly gosh! Thank you SO much for all the e-mail alerts I got for this story! I was so happy! 26 reviews on the first chapter!**

So, I know I said it would be a while before I updated, but GND is taking longer than I thought, and since it's coming to a close I decided it would be okay to update this. :D

Disclaimer: I DON'T own anything, besides Annie and the gym. :D

Once again, all _italics_** are memories. Flashbacks. My favorite parts.**

* * *

She wasn't stupid; she knew she was special to everyone. She got that they all wanted to be there for her, and be the mother she needed to have. She knew when Abby would ask her about girly stuff, or Jenny would ask her if she wanted to go get her nails done or her hair trimmed. She knew it in the way Gibbs would pick her up off the ground and call her an angel, and then buy her candy and treats. She knew, she understood. She liked the attention, the constant pampering and love in her life. However, sometimes she wished she could just have a mommy and a daddy like all of her friends. She would watch them as they went to hug their parents, and the daddy would pick the kid up and the mom would say something and kiss the kid on the cheek. She would watch, and then sigh.

She loved her dad, don't get me wrong. She really did. Nonetheless, sometimes she wished her family wasn't so big and complicated.

She felt bad for thinking so, but sometimes she just wanted one mother.

* * *

"Daddy, I want to know now."

I stopped eating my dinner to see Annie and Abby standing in the kitchen doorway. I stood up and Abby crushed me in a hug.

"Tony!" Abby said, and I smiled.

"Hi Abs." I said, and she smiled. Annie bound forward, and I picked her up. I kissed her cheek and she smiled.

"Hi daddy, but now I want to know." She said, and Abby tilted her head.

"Know… oh. Well, I will leave now. Bye guys!" She said as she walked out of the apartment. I took Annie into the living room, sitting down on the couch. She curled up next to me; her head snuggled into my side.

"What do you want to know?" I asked, and regretted even asking.

"I want to know about her." She said, and I sighed.

"What about her?" I asked, and she stopped. She moved so she was sitting a little away from me, her legs crossed.

"What did you love most about her?" She asked, and I stopped.

"Why do you have to ask this now?" I asked her, and she pointed one of her small fingers at me.

"Daddy." She said in a warning tone.

"_Tony, if you even think about it, I'll kill you." She warned me, and I stopped reaching across her desk to pull on her hair._

"_Aw, come on! Have a little fun." I said, sitting back in my chair. She glared at me, pulling her hair up in a ponytail. I pouted at her, and she smirked._

"You didn't like her hair up?" Annie asked, and I shrugged.

"It all depended on what shirt she was wearing. Sometimes, when we were teaching a class, it looked better up." I said, and Annie paused.

"Wait, you worked together? Like, she was like Lee?" I nodded at her.

"Yes we did." I said, and Annie smiled.

"So, that is how you met!" Annie said, and I grimaced.

"_I'm going to miss her Tony." Abby said in my ear, and I wrapped my arms around her tighter._

"_It's going to be okay Abby." I said, and I felt tears on my shoulder as Abby kept crying._

"_Why did she have to die like that?" Abby asked, and I shrugged._

"_Ask the drunk driver who hit her." I whispered, and she sniffed._

"_Do you think she suffered?" She whispered, and I shook my head._

"_I'm not sure. I know she was with Ari though. She was probably having a fun time when the driver hit her." I said, and Abby sniffed again. She moved to look at me, and then rubbed her nose._

"_I hope so. Ari made her so happy." She whispered, and I kissed her cheek._

"_She's in Heaven now." I said, and Abby nodded._

"_I know. Just, I wish she wouldn't have died. She was so great. She was my best friend." _

_I nodded, gently rubbing her back._

"_She was everyone's best friend. I think even Gibbs thought of her a close friend." I said, and Abby nodded._

"_Gosh, this sucks." Abby said, starting to cry again. I wrapped my arms around her again, holding her tightly and rubbing her back._

"_I know." I said, feeling small tears in my own eyes._

"_I'm going to miss you Kate." Abby whispered._

"Kate? Kate who?" Annie asked.

"She was my partner before your mother." I said, and Annie nodded.

"What was she like?"

"_I don't get it Gibbs. They all want into that one class and it's the worst class." Kate said, looking through her signup sheet. I grabbed it from her, looking over the names._

"_These are all old ladies." I said, and Kate glared at me._

"_Looking for a hot babe, Tony?" Kate asked, and I smirked at her._

"_Maybe." I said, and she shook her head._

"_Pig."_

Annie nodded, and twirled her hair.

"So, she was mean to you?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"No, she wasn't. That was how we acted. Like brother and sister." I said, and Annie smiled.

"How does that go with how you met my mother?" She asked me, and I smiled.

_I sat at my desk, looking across at the now empty desk. Abby had taken all of Kate's stuff, and was going through it to see if there was anything that belonged to anyone else. Gibbs had taken her computer away, and was getting McGee to remove anything personal that Kate had on there. _

"_Some person doesn't need to sit down and see Kate's personal life spread out on this computer." He had said._

_I heard the door to the gym open, and looked out the huge windows that encased the office that I occupied. I saw Gibbs walking with Kate's computer in his arms. He walked into the office, putting it down in the compartment. He didn't even bother to plug it in. He didn't know how._

"_How are you Tony?" He asked, and I shrugged._

"_I'm better." I said, and he nodded. He sat down at the opposite desk, and put his hands flat on the desk._

"_Well, you're new partner should be here later. She's just moved into town." He said, and I nodded._

"_I'll be here." I said, and Gibbs smiled._

"_We all will. We may not be open tomorrow, but we do have to make sure the place is ready for Monday." He said, and I nodded._

"_Want me to show the… what's her name?"_

"_Ziva. Ziva David." A voice said from the door, and I turned._

"That's it? That was it?" Annie asked in disbelief. I shrugged.

"It wasn't ideal." I said, and Annie shrugged.

"You know, I have no clue what that means?" She said, and I laughed.

"Yes, I know that." I said, and she smiled.

"How long did you know each other?" She asked.

"Until what?" I asked.

"When you guys started to date." She decided.

"_You know, we've been partners for four years and six months." I said, and she smiled._

"_We were partners for four years." She said, and I tilted my head._

"_No." I said, and she shook her head._

"_We've been dating for six months. I think once you've started to date you're partner, you aren't just partners anymore." She said logically. I smiled at her._

"_We've still been partners for four years and six months."_

"Four years?! It took you four years until you asked her out?" Annie asked incredulously. She got onto her knees, her eyes wide.

"Well, yeah." I said, and she crossed her arms across her chest. I glared at her.

"What?" I asked her, and she sighed.

"It took you four years to figure out that you loved her?" She asked, and I sighed.

"No, it took me two and a half." I said to her. She stopped glaring at me, and rested her butt on the back of her feet.

"When did you first realize it?" She asked, and I felt as though I was being interrogated.

_It was a free day. Sunday afternoon. The gym was never open on Sunday's, seeing as most people went to church and didn't go to the gym. However, since some of the employees didn't go to church, we all hung out in the gym. It was something Gibbs started after I arrived, and it became a tradition for most. Every Sunday we all hung out, goofing off in the pool and sitting in the sauna until our fingers were as wrinkled as an old person's skin. We had to get our schedules ready for Monday, but none of us did that until about seven. Well, besides McGee._

"_Tony, are you coming out here or not?" Abby asked, and I raised an eyebrow at her._

"_What are you doing here? You don't work here." I asked, and she shrugged._

"_Even if I don't work her, I'm still Gibbs' favorite." She said with a smile, moving away from the door. I shook my head, taking off my shirt and walking out into the gym. I looked at the pools, and smiled._

_Ziva was laying on a blow up chair, face down and arms on either side of her, sitting in the water. I smirked, moving slowly into the pool. I knew she was dozing, but not fully asleep. I went under the water slowly, making sure I made no noise. I swam over to where she lounged and I swam under her. I reached up and pushed the blow up chair over, and she dunked into the water. I came up for air, laughing as she came up too. She glared at me, her hair plastered to the side of her face._

"_Tony!" She yelled, and I laughed. I didn't move as she swam up to me, knowing that she wouldn't hurt me._

"_Yes?" I asked sweetly. She growled at me, and then hit my chest._

"_Don't do that again." She said, and I smiled._

"_What if I did?" I asked. She smirked at me, reaching forward and wrapping her arms around my neck. Her legs went around my waist, and I put my hands on her thighs. She leaned up, her face inches from mine._

"_You do remember that I know where you live, I know most of your fears, and every single way to torture you." She said and I shrugged._

"_Frivolous stuff." I said, and she laughed. She threw her head back, and I got a clear view of her neck._

"_Oh, and it doesn't scare you?" She asked, looking back at me._

_I stopped, thinking about what she said. No, it didn't scare me. I wasn't afraid of her threats and I wasn't scared of her anymore. No, instead I found it attractive and a turn on. It didn't scare me._

"_Yes, it does. I just don't think you'll take any action." I said, and she scoffed._

"_Oh, you might want to lock your doors tonight." She said, wiggling her hips before letting go of me and pushing her feet off my stomach. I watched her swim away, my body frozen. When she stopped at the opposite end of the pool, she looked at me._

"_What, bat got your tongue?"_

_I unfroze myself, swimming over next to her._

"_Cat. Cat got your tongue." I said, picking her up and throwing her into the water._

"_Tony!"_

Annie scrunched up her face, a smile on her lips. She moved so she was sitting on the ground flat, her hand on her knees.

"That was it?" She asked, and I laughed.

"What?" I asked between laughs, and she stood up.

"You didn't tell her?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"Honey, you need to understand something. She was my best friend. We talked about everything, played pranks on McGee together, and worked together almost every day. But, there was one thing we always danced around, never just hit it on the nose. We never talked about feelings, and never about if we had them for each other. When Ziva's brother died, she didn't speak of it. And I didn't press it. After about three months, we were sitting at our desks doing paperwork and she just randomly said she missed him. I didn't ask whom she was talking about, because I already knew.

"She didn't cry, she didn't show it on her face. Just said it plainly, as if it was something she said every day. I reached over and reassuring squeezed her hand, and then we went back to work. She was fine, and we didn't speak about it again. That was how we were. And if we ever did talk about our feelings, it was only because we were angry and yelling at each other." I said, and Annie scrunched her eyebrows again. I knew she was having a hard time understanding this, seeing as she was used to fairy tales and happy endings.

"How did her brother die?" Annie asked, and I moved to sit down on the ground in front of her.

"Drunk driver hit the car he and Kate were in."

"He was Ari?" She asked, and I nodded.

"So, how did you not meet him if he was dating Kate?" She asked, sounding surprised.

"Nope. Kate knew his family, said they were nice. Well, that his sisters were. Said his dad was not so accepting of her. But claimed he was a hypocrite. Ziva had to explain that to me." I said, laughing at the memory.

"So, she never introduced you to Ari?"

"Oh no, we all met Ari. Since Kate's parents died in a plane crash years ago, we were her family." I said, and Annie fell back on the ground.

"This is all so confusing." She said, and I smiled.

"Well, it is your bed time." I said, and she groaned.

"But I want to know more." She complained, and I smiled at her.

"How about this: I'll tell you a bedtime story." I said, and she smiled.

"Yes, I like bedtime stories." She said, and I picked her up off the ground. I carried into her room again, just like every other night, and she got changed. She crawled back into her bed, and I sat down sat down on the edge.

"So, what do you want to hear?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"Tell me something different tonight." She said, and I thought it over.

"Well, once upon a time, there was a ninja. And the ninja was married to a pro wrestler. They lived in a small house in a large city, with their one child. Now, the kid was a curious little kid, and always asked questions. One night, the little girl asked her mother to show her some moves, and the ninja kindly obliged. Much to the father's dismay, he was flipped over and held down by his wife, and the little girl squealed with delight."

"Daddy, this is about me and you and mommy." Annie said, giggling from where she laid curled up in her bed. I smiled, leaning down and tickling her.

"Oh, but you don't know this story." I said, and she laughed.

"Yes I do. I squeal, and then you and mommy laugh and go back to watching TV." She said, and I stopped. She was reciting it as if she had seen it before.

"How did you know that?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"I just... do." She said, and I raised an eyebrow. She shrugged, and I shook my head. I leaned down to kiss her forehead, and she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Daddy, can I sleep with you again?" She asked, and I smiled at her. I picked her up out of her bed, and she wrapped her legs around my stomach. I shut off her light as I walked out and then walked down the hall to the living room. I shut off all the lights, and left on the hallway light again. I walked into my room, and gently put Annie down in the bed. She curled up in the middle, and I got ready for bed. When I walked back in, Annie was laying on her back. She looked at me, her hands under her head. I sat down next to her.

"Go to sleep Annie." I said, rolling over and laying so I was facing her. She curled up into my chest, and I wrapped my arms around her body.

"Laila tov daddy." She said, and I looked down at her.

"Who taught you that?" I asked, slightly shocked.

"Abby." She mumbled, and I shook my head.

I was going to have a talk with my favorite little Goth.

"Night. I love you." I said, and she snuggled closer to me.

"I love you too." She whispered before she fell asleep.

--

"_I'm thirsty."_

"_You're always thirsty." She said, and I shrugged._

"_No, I'm always hungry." I said, and she nodded._

"_Yes, this is true." She said, opening her desk drawer and throwing me a candy bar. I smiled at her, and opened the candy bar._

"_Did I ever tell you that I love you?" I asked, staring at the candy bar._

"_I assume you are talking to the candy bar?" She asked, her eyes on me. I smiled at her._

"_Well, no. But, if you think so go right ahead." I said, and she smiled. She shook her head before looking back down at her paperwork. I smiled, glad that she didn't think any further into the small statement._

I walked across the floor, watching as the old women in the pool practiced their strokes. Lee was working with a woman in the shallowest end, and it looked like Lee wasn't having a good time.

"Mr. DiNozzo?" One the women in the front said, and I crouched down to her level.

"Yes, Mary?" I said to her. She moved her arms a little, and I smiled.

"Your left arm movement is off. Keep it closer to your body." I said, and she watched as she moved her arm tighter to her body. She smiled at me again, and I moved around the pool.

"DiNozzo! Get over here!" Gibbs yelled at me from his office. I looked over at Lee, who nodded, and walked over to Gibbs.

"Yeah Boss." I said as I walked over to him.

"Annie's school called. Said she is in the office, crying."

* * *

**I know, a LOT of flashbacks. Annie is a curious little case. :) She just wants to know, and those flash backs are important to the next chapter, WHICH I am writing. It may seemed rushed, but this chapter is the beginning of the mystery.**

I left it there for a reason people. kind of a cliffhanger.

-Reviews? :)Izzy


	3. Pictures Of You

**So, did I mention that this is AU? Yeah, well. It is. I was thinking about whether it should be at NCIS or not, but then I realized that I'm not smart enough to do a fic with NCIS and all it's NCISness in it. if you get what i mean. i am just NOT good at writing cases and the NCIS bull pen stuff. So, i decided that they should work at a gym. sorry if that is disappointing to anyone.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I wish I owned a box of ice cream though. It's hot in this house.**

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Annie knew that her family past was complicated. She understood it when her father got that far off look in his eyes when he looked at pictures. She knew by the way he slept, his arm reaching across the bed for a woman that wasn't there. She knew when she would walk into his room in the morning and he would look like he hadn't slept all night. It was obvious when she went to his work, and saw that Lee had little things on her desk, and that her father didn't talk to Lee much. He was distancing himself from her, and she didn't seem to mind. She was nice, but Annie knew.

Tony just wanted Ziva back.

* * *

I was worried. Well, maybe not so much worried as nervous. I never got calls from Annie's school. She was the perfect student, and followed all the rules. She wasn't clingy to home, and on her first day of Kindergarten, she actually had to tell me to leave. I never got a call she was crying, and she never came home sad.

This was new to me.

"Tony, I bet she just fell." Abby said from next to me, and I took in a deep breath.

"Yeah, maybe." I said, pulling up to Annie's school. Abby stayed in the car, too busy sucking on her Caf-Pow to even bother getting up, and I walked up the stairs and into the school. I made my way to the office, and walked inside. Annie was sitting in the nurse's room with her head down. Her hair was covering her face, but I could see little tear stains on her jeans.

"Ah, Mr. DiNozzo. Annabelle has been waiting for you." The woman behind the counter said, and she handed me the sign out sheet. I signed my name and made my way over to where Annie sat. I crouched down in front of her, pushing her hair back behind her ear.

"Annie, it's me." I whispered to her, gently rubbing her back. She sniffed loudly, and I nodded at the nurse.

"I've got her." I said, picking up Annie. She sat limply in my arms, her head resting on my shoulder. I nodded at the woman in the office as I walked out, soothingly whispering words of comfort into her ear.

"What happened Annie?" I asked quietly, and she shook her head. Her body shook as sobs over took her, and my shoulder was covered with tears. I furrowed my brow in confusion, wondering what could get my daughter this upset. It was strange and worried me. When I got to the car, Abby instantly opened the door and held out her arms. I handed Annie to her, and she reached back towards me.

"It's okay Annie. It's just Abby." I whispered in her ear. She whimpered before moving back into Abby's arms, and I shut the door. I walked around the front of the car and got in, reaching over and stroking Annie's hair. Abby was whispering words of comfort into Annie's ear, much like I had. I started the car again, and drove home.

--

"Tony, she's going to be alright."

I nodded, leaning against the door frame. After arriving home, I had Abby give Annie a bath. I had to sit in the door frame, as Annie got distressed when I was out of her line of sight.

And we still didn't know what was wrong with her.

She was now asleep, her legs curled up to her chest. I hadn't moved from the door frame the whole time, and Abby was now resting across the hall from me.

"I know. I've just never seen her like this." I said, looking at Annie's sleeping face. I felt Abby's hand on my arm, and I looked at her.

"How have you been?" She asked, and I looked away.

_Ziva looked up at me, a strange look on her face._

"_Is there a reason you are wearing two different socks?" She asked, and I smiled._

"_Well, do I have to wear the same color socks?" I smiled at her, and she shrugged._

"_No." She stated, walking away. I smiled at her as she walked away, glad she had noticed._

"I'm doing fine Abs." I lied, and Abby sighed.

"Tony, you have become a horrible liar. I thought Ziva was a human lie detector. Wouldn't you have gotten better at it with her around?" Abby asked, and I gritted my teeth.

"I did get better." I said quietly, looking at Annie again. She was rolling over, and she settled on her back.

"Ah. Well." She said, stopping. I looked at her, and saw she looked puzzled.

"What Abby? Spit it out." I said, and she crossed her arms.

"I was just wondering how you've been. I haven't really asked you, well no one has, but I just wanted to know how you are. No one really talked to you after what happened. I felt bad." She said, a sad smile on her face. I reached over and patted her cheek, smiling at her. I sat back a little, trying to get comfortable against the door frame.

"Well, I'm fine now." I answered shortly, and she sighed.

"I'm sorry Tony. And don't give me that, don't apologize it's a sign of weakness crap that Gibbs gives me and you and McGee and every other person he meets. Because, I don't think this is a weakness. This is strength." She said, and I looked at her. She had a few stray tears falling down her face.

"Oh, Abby. Please don't start crying too." I said, moving to sit next to her. I heard Annie whimper, and Abby moved over next to me instead.

"Daddy." Annie said, and I looked into the room. She was looking at me, her eyes sleepy.

"Go back to sleep Annie." I said, and she nodded. She put her head back down on the bed, and I looked at Abby. She was also asleep. I groaned, knowing that if I moved Annie would call for me. I looked back at her, and then at Abby. Cursing, I picked Abby up and walking to my room. I heard Annie call me, but ignored her for a minute while I put Abby in my bed. She snuggled into the blankets and I hurriedly walked back down the hall to Annie's room. She was sitting up, fresh tears on her face.

"Annie, it's okay. I'm right here." I said, sitting down next to her. She moved so she was in my lap, and I wrapped my arms around her.

"I love you daddy." She said quietly, and I smiled at her. I rubbed her back, and rested my head on hers.

"Annie, what upset you today?" I asked, and she looked up at me.

"You won't believe me." She whispered, and I shook my head.

"I bet I will." I said, and she laughed a little.

"No, because I know you daddy. I know you won't." She said, and I looked at her. This was side she got from her mother; the kind that got her mind set on something and didn't want anything else. Although, I have been told I'm just as stubborn.

"I promise. I'll believe you." I said, and she looked up at me.

"I saw Ziva." She said, and I stopped.

"She's your mother. You can call her mom." I said instantly, and she looked kind of relieved.

"You believe me?" she asked, and I sighed.

"Where did you see her?" I asked, and she pouted.

"You don't believe me." She said.

"I do, it's just I want to know." I said, and she looked at me skeptically.

"I saw her outside my school at recess." She said, pulling on her hair absentmindedly.

"What did you do?" I asked her, watching her carefully. She shook her head, and I saw that she looked as if she was scolding herself.

"I walked over to the fence and watched her. She was sitting on a bench, and when she saw me she got up and ran." Annie said, getting a far off look in her eyes. She then looked up at me.

"Daddy, what happened? What happened with mommy?" She asked, and I bit my bottom lip.

In reality, I had never told anyone what had happened that morning. Well, I told numerous police officers about how I had woken up, but I didn't tell them about the night before, the days before, the suspicion, the look Ziva got in her eyes sometimes. She never told me what it was, but I began to see a pattern. I noticed where we were when she got the look, or what was playing on the TV, or what Annie was doing.

"Daddy." Annie said, and I blinked. I was looking right into Annie's eyes, and I couldn't help the sad smile that crossed my face.

"Annie." I replied, and she huffed. She got off my lap and crawled back up into her bed. I kissed her forehead again, and moved out of the room.

"Daddy?"

I looked back through the door.

"What?" I asked.

"I love you." She said, and I smiled.

--

By Friday, Annie had completely forgotten about seeing her mother. Well, supposedly. It was still sketchy. On Saturday, she came to work with me, and sat at my desk drawing pictures. At lunch, I walked in to find that there were about twenty pictures taped clumsily on my wall. She smiled at me as she explained each picture, and I actually laughed at the picture of Abby. After lunch I went back out to work, and came back in at 3 to find her asleep on the mattress that was behind my desk. I smiled, moving over to sit in my chair. I heard her mumble a little, and I looked at her.

"_DiNozzo, what is that?" Gibbs asked, pointing to the mattress. I looked over at Ziva, who shrugged, and then at Gibbs._

"_It's a mattress." I said, and he slapped my head. I saw Ziva smirk._

"_What for? This is a gym." He said._

"_We work long nights Gibbs." Ziva said simply, not looking up from her paperwork. I nodded._

"_So, you guys just sleep on that thing after doing all of your paperwork?" He asked, actually smirking. Ziva looked up, and frowned._

"_Why must all men have their minds in the gutter?" She asked, and I chuckled._

That mattress had been placed behind my desk about five weeks after Ziva came. I found that she would come in tired and a little touchy at times. Not long after, I learned that she didn't sleep well. I found her asleep at her desk, and I brought the mattress in. From that day on, on our lunch breaks, she would curl up on the mattress and doze off for the hour we were allowed. It brought back some of the best memories of the office; every time I thought about it I smiled. And seeing Annie sleeping there just made me smile wider.

"Tony, do you have the lists for tomorrow done?" Lee asked me, and I nodded. I handed her the packet, and she looked it over. I watched her, and then picked up my phone when it rang.

"DiNozzo." I said, looking at my computer. I waited for someone to spoke, and when they didn't I sighed and hung up.

"Prank call?" Lee asked, and I nodded.

"I've been getting a lot of those lately. I don't know what it is either." She said, and I tilted my head.

"How much it a lot?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"At least three a day." She said, and I looked down at my phone. I shook my head, turning back to make sure Annie was still dozing on the mattress. I smiled when I saw she was, and stood up.

"I'm going to take these to Gibbs." I said, making my way out of the room. I walked across the floor, smiling as I saw McGee struggling to put the yoga balls away in the storage room. I walked over to Gibb's 'office' and knocked on the door. He waved me inside, and I handed him my reports.

"On time for once." He said, and I shrugged.

"I've had time." I said, looking around at the pictures that never got old. I smiled at the picture of Abby and Ziva, after they finally got along. Then there was a picture of Abby and McGee, trying to fix Gibbs' computer. The look on McGeeks as he looked though all the clutter was priceless.

"Memory lane." Gibbs stated, and I looked at him. I nodded, and went to walk out. But Gibbs stopped me.

"DiNozzo, take Annie and go home." He said, and I nodded. I walked back to my office, and found Annie sitting on my desk, watching Lee. I saw Lee twitch nervously, and grabbed Annie.

"Let's go Annie." I said to her, and she smiled. Lee looked up, and waved.

"Bye guys." She said, and I waved back. I shut off my desk light, grabbed Annie's bag, and walked out of the office.

"Daddy, I want ice cream." Annie said, and I looked at her.

"We have some at home." I said, and she shook her head.

"No, you ate it all." She said, and I frowned. Once I put her in the car and got in myself, I looked at her.

"You want ice cream, my little lady?" I asked in an accented voice, and she giggled.

"Yes dad." She said, and I nodded. I drove to the convenient store near our house, and carried Annie inside. She wiggled out of my arms as we walked over to the ice cream, and she stared at the boxes. I watched her carefully, and when she pointed to Mint Chocolate Chip, I made a face.

"Really Annie?" I asked, and she laughed.

"No, I just wanted to mess with you." She said, and I laughed. She looked at the boxes, and opened the door. She grabbed a cookies and cream box, and handed it to me.

"What, are we getting more?" I said, and she smiled. She moved down away from the freezers, and around the corner. I followed her, and almost fell over when I ran into her. She smiled at me as she handed me the box of cones, and then she grabbed a thing of gummy bears. I smiled at her, and grabbed some gummy worms.

"Are we done?" I asked, and she nodded. I handed her the candy, and she skipped down the aisle. I smiled as I followed her, but when she stopped skipping I frowned. She was standing at the end of the aisle, looking down the way. I walked up next to her, looking at where her eyes fell. I saw what she saw, and looked down at her. She had a somewhat smug look on her face, and I frowned. I looked back down to the front of the store, but she was gone.

"It was her, wasn't it daddy?" Annie asked, and I looked at her. Gosh, she could do smug so well.

"Yeah. That was your mother." I said, feeling the words sink into my brain. "That was Ziva."

**

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**Since there are three chapters of GND left, this is getting updated.**

**I'll give a prize to anyone who can get what happened to ziva. Or, close to it. i bet you won't get it. But, try me. **

**Leave me love(aka reviews. :D)**

**-Izzy**


	4. Sorry

**I should be asleep right now, and I should be updating Girl Next Door, and I should have posted that one shot for Ellen, but heck, I rarely do what I SHOULD do. Italian side of me. So, thank you guys so much for all of the reviews. I'm really happy that you like it, because I've had this idea for AGES and I am glad I finally got it written.**

**Thank you to _princessjoey630_ for letting me use some of the stuff she wrote in _B12_ for this chapter. The proposal is from that story. Check it out if you haven't. Great story. :D**

**Disclaimer: I can't, nor will I probably ever, own something as great as NCIS, House M.D, Family Guy, Fox Network, CBS etc...**

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Abby wasn't sure what was worse; knowing how Kate died, or not knowing what had happened to Ziva. Sure, she knew she disappeared, and that no one could figure out to where or why or how, but that was it. That was all they knew. All she knew. Tony never said anything about it, but anyone who saw his face when someone said her name, or mentioned Annie and her growing up; they knew he thought about it. They knew he wasn't so naive, and he knew something important. But, no one tried to push it, not even Abby. She wanted to, she really did.

But she knew it would crush him.

* * *

The look of smugness on Annie's face for the next three days was impossibly cute, but annoying. She sat at the dinner table, watching me eat with a smug smile on her face. I glared at her, and went back to eating my food.

"Dad, we saw her." She said, and I didn't look at her. She had been badgering me since that night we got ice cream.

"I know Annabelle." I said, and Annie shut up. When I used her full name, she knew to let it go.

I got up and put my dishes in the sink. Annie came up next to me, handing me the dishes she had used. She grabbed her stool, and she stood next to me. I scrubbed, and she rinsed, just like every night.

"Can I ask you one question daddy?" Annie asked, and I looked at her. I didn't answer, and she got the hint.

"Well, what happened with mom? When did she… disappear?" She asked, and I stopped cleaning the dishes. I shook my head, looking back down at the plate in my hand.

_With one toss, the glass plate broke against the wall. Pieces flew across the room, and a child's cry reached my ears. I looked at the mess in front of me, and then down the hall to my daughter. I sighed, remembering the words she had told me._

"_Not everything is perfect, no matter how things look on the outside."_

"A lot happened." I said, putting the dish down before it became the seventh to break on the kitchen wall. Annie saw this, and she turned off the water. She was always efficient. After wiping her hands off on the kitchen towel, she put her stool away.

"Can I ask you some more questions about mom?" She asked me, and I sighed. I looked at the dishes, and then my daughter. Again, I was stuck choosing.

"Sure." I said, picking her up and carrying her into the living room. She grabbed her blanket off the fridge as we walked, and she wrapped herself up in it. I put her down on the couch, and sat on the ground.

"What do you want to know now?" I asked, feeling a little bitter inside. I liked to talk with Annie, but when she wanted to talk about the past, it was harder. She always knew the right nerve to hit.

Annie got a bright look in her eyes, and I knew she was thinking of something fairy tail like.

"When did you first tell her you loved her?" She said.

"_That is ridiculous Tony. I don't see that as realistic at all." She said, referring to the movie we had just finished watching. About a year into our friendship, I had grown tired of her not knowing any of great movies. So, we started a movie night. We kept it, all the way though our romantic relationship and until Annie was born._

"_But that is the best part! None of it seems real, but you know that it's great anyway." I said, and she rolled her eyes. She picked up the last piece of pizza, and I raised my eyebrow at her._

"_What, did you want this?" She asked, and I nodded._

"_As a matter of fact, I did." I said, reaching over to get it. She kept it away from me, taking a bite. I sputtered a little, and she laughed at me._

"_Having trouble Tony?" She asked me, getting up. I followed her, reaching out for the pizza. She put it behind her back._

"_I want the pizza Zee-vah." I said, grabbing her upper arm. She smirked at me. She brought the pizza around in front of her, taking a huge bite._

"_Oh, you mean this?" She said with her mouth full. I grabbed what was left, and frowned._

"_You almost ate the whole piece!" I said, and she smiled. She swallowed the pizza and wrapped her arms around my waist. I dropped the pizza as I wrapped my arms around her body, pulling her close to me._

"_That wasn't nice." I said, pressing my lips to her forehead. She smiled, snuggling her head into my neck._

"_It was funny." She said, and I smiled._

"_A little." I agreed, and she laughed. She reached up and took my face in her hands, kissing me softly. When she pulled back, I couldn't help myself._

"_I love you."_

"Did you guys fight over pizza often?" Annie asked, and I shrugged.

"When one of us took the last piece." I said with a smile, and Annie laughed.

"When did she tell you she loved you?" Annie asked, and I smiled. It was one of the best memories I kept with me.

_I yawned again, rubbing my eyes as I lay on the mattress in our office. Ziva was sitting next to me, leaning against my chair as she read a book. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, and I could hear McGee and Gibbs talking in my sleepy haze. It had been a long week, and after finishing my reports I had decided to take a nap. I felt Ziva's hand weave it's way though my hair, and gently massage my head._

"_Is he asleep?" McGee asked, and Ziva's hand stopped massaging my head._

"_No McGee. He's meditating." Ziva said, sarcasm dripping from her voice._

"_Right." McGee said, and then there was silence again. I rolled over so I was facing Ziva, and then I felt her move into my arms. I wrapped my arms around her, and I heard her sigh. She gently held my face in her hands, and her fingers ran through my hair._

"_I love you Tony." She said quietly, kissing my chin._

Annie rolled over, looking up at me.

"She told you when you were asleep, or thought you were?"

I nodded, remembering waking up knowing she had finally said it. I leaned back against the arm of the sofa, feeling tired. Annie could stay up for hours, and I knew that. But, since it was Wednesday and she needed to go to school tomorrow, she had to go to bed.

"Annie, it's time to go to bed." I said, and she groaned.

"One last story." She said, and I sighed.

"Get in bed, and I'll answer your question." I said, and she jumped up. When I walked into her room, she was drinking some water out of the bottle Abby had bought her at Disney Land. It had Tinker Bell on it, and it always stayed next to her bed with water in it.

"You're fast." I said, and she smiled. She put her bottle on her nightstand, and snuggled in against her pillows.

"Can you give me Nathan?" Annie asked, and I grabbed her favorite stuffed animal. After she was born, Ziva bought a brown cat with an extra long tail for Annie. Ziva named it Nathan, the boy name we had picked out, and it became Annie's most loved stuffed animal. 'Nafan' was her first word too, which had surprised me all to hell.

I handed Nathan to Annie, and she snuggled the cat to her chest. I watched as she rubbed her cheek against the fabric, and then looked up at me.

"One more question." Annie said, and I nodded.

"Only one though. It's late." I said, and she nodded. She thought for a minute, and then she smiled.

"How did you ask her to marry you?" She asked.

_I sat in the hospital room, looking at Ziva as she talked to the doctor. At 37 weeks, her stomach was huge and her face was glowing. I had never believed it when men said their wives glowed during their pregnancy, but now I did. Ziva looked radiant and her eyes were glistening. After the doctor left, she looked at me._

"_Finally, that stupid doctor is gone. He is so pompous, and annoying. I can't wait until our child is born, and I can finally get away from him. Can't you like, kick him in the balls and say the baby made you do it?" I asked._

_Ziva laughed. Her eyes twinkled, and I couldn't help but smile at her beauty. "Tony. I-"_

"_Marry me." _

_Ziva stared. "What?"_

_I took in a deep breath, saying it again. "Marry me, Ziva."_

_Ziva looked at me as if I was crazy, her hands rubbing over her stomach. She did that when she was nervous._

"_Tony, what-"_

_I moved so I was kneeling down beside her bed, taking her hand. _

"_Ziva, I've been working with you for years, and have dated you for two. You've become my family, my best friend, and I keep falling in love with you more and more every day. And the fact that now you're having my child…. I'm so happy right now, and I want to be with you all the time. And I know you feel the same. You know it, and I know it. We know we are meant to be together."_

_For a moment, I made Ziva speechless. "Tony, have you even thought about this? It seems impul-"I cut her off again._

"_I have thought about it." I said, pulling out a small green box. I put it on the bed next to her, and she picked it up._

"_Can't you do this like a normal person?" She asked, and I couldn't help but laugh._

"_Have we ever been normal?" I asked, and she smiled. She looked at the box again._

"_Tony-"_

"_Ziva."_

"_What?"_

"_This is the part where you give me an answer so I can stop feeling like an idiot and regain feeling in my knee because this floor is really bad to kneel on."_

"_Yes."_

"_What?" I asked._

_Ziva smiled. "Yes."_

"_You can have more than ten seconds-"_

"_Yes." _

"_You can think more about it."_

"_No."_

_I frowned. "Yes or no?"_

_Ziva moved over, and put a hand on my face. "Tony, my answer is yes."_

Annie was smiling at me when I finished, and she sighed.

"That is so cute." She squealed, and I laughed at her.

"You're funny." I said, gently moving her hair off her face.

"Why weren't you guy's normal?" She asked, and I shrugged.

"We never did anything like everyone else. Our first date was a group bowling night, and we ended up staying out until three AM at a café." I said, and she grinned.

"That sounds romantic." She said, and I shrugged.

"Eh, we ended up arguing over what coffee was better, hers or mine." I said.

"Did you guys argue a lot?" Annie asked, her voice getting quieter as she fell more asleep.

"Yeah, I guess we did. But, Jenny said that was how we stayed so close. We were always honest with each other." I said, and Annie shut her eyes.

"Grandma and grandpa argue a lot too." She said, and I smiled.

"Well, Gibbs and Jenny have a relationship much like your moms and mine was." I said, and she smiled. I kissed her forehead, and rubbed her upper arm.

"Night daddy." She said, mumbling as she fell asleep.

"Night Ans."

--

I woke up in a cold sweat, my hands clenching the bed sheets. I bit my pillow, fighting back the yell that I needed to let loose. I took a deep breath through my nose, and cursed.

I rolled out of bed, grabbing my running shoes. I got dressed in a flash, not caring what time it was. I needed to clear my head, and cold morning hair seemed the best way. I made sure Annie was still asleep before I made my way silently out the front door. I stretched out before I jogged down the street. Small café's were just opening up, and a florist was putting flowers out front. I nodded at the man as I made my way down the sidewalk. I jogged to the park, and ran through the trees. All of the green was a blur to me, and I couldn't make out the trail from the bark of the trees.

My brain kept going back to my dream, showing me flashes of the horrid nightmare. I shook my head as I ran, stopping next to a tree and resting my head against it.

"Stop it DiNozzo. You need to stop it." I said to myself, and I hit the tree. The leaves shook, and one fell next to me. I looked down at the trail, and started to jog again. When I came back out of the trees, I was at the playground I took Annie to all the time. I sat down on the end of the slide, and rubbed my face. I was breathing heavily, still half asleep. I shook my head quickly, and I felt the cold air hit the sweat on my neck. It made me shiver.

After walking around the park, I jogged back down the street opposite the park. It was quicker than going back through the trees. As I jogged, I stopped at a doughnut shop, buying some fresh doughnuts for Annie when she woke up. I carried the bag as I ran, the doughnuts bouncing in a rhythm that harmonized with the rhythm my feet made. When I slowed down on my street, I saw a car sitting outside the court my house was on. I could barely make out a figure sitting there in the morning sun, but I knew who it was as I got closer. I sucked in a quick breath, and my teeth protested at the cold.

She got out of the car, and stood next to the door. When I came to a stop in front of the car, I finally got a good look at her. Her hair was shorter, hanging beneath her shoulders. It was just a curly as I remembered it, maybe even more, but it looked a little fuzzy, as if she had straightened it and it frizzed out in the slight fog. She was just as small as always, a good head shorter than me, and she looked skinnier than I remembered her. And even in the dark, I could see her eyes twinkling as she looked at me.

I took in a deep breath again, trying to regain my composure. I was starting to get cold, and I moved my hands to my arms to rub at the skin. Something was keeping me from stepping forward and talking to her. I finally took a step forward, and then I stopped.

"What are you doing here?" I asked her, finally finding my voice but not the right words.

"I should not be here." She said, her voice raspy. She sounded like she had been yelling for the past hour.

"Why not?" I asked, and she shut the car door. She moved over to me, invading my personal space like she always did. I missed it.

"I should not, but I had to." She said, her eyes going over my face. I couldn't move my eyes from her neck, where I could see a slight purple tinge. I reached up, and then stopped myself. She saw this, and she took my hand. It reminded me of a movie; our hands entwined at the same height as her shoulders.

"Why?" I asked again, and she sighed.

"I don't have the time." She said, and I looked at her. She finally met my gaze, and I could see her conflict in her eyes.

"Ziva, what happened?" I asked, trying to keep myself from wrapping my arms around her.

"I do not have time." She said, and I let go of her hand.

"God damn it Ziva. You disappear one morning; no warning and no word of where you were or if you were okay. And you scared the crap out of Annie. I don't care if you don't have time. I deserve an explanation." I said to her, and she cringed away from me. I saw more purple on her arms, and I sighed.

"I'm sorry Ziva. But…" I trailed off, and I think she got was I was saying. I reached out and pushed her hair back, and then ran my fingers though it. I was caught off guard when she shut her eyes and let her head rest in my hand. I moved my hand to her cheek, rubbing my thumb over her skin. With her neck bent like that, I could see the bruises on her neck. I felt my anger spike as I saw they were shaped like a hand, or fingers.

"What's on your neck?" I asked, reaching up and touching the bruises. She stiffened slightly, but she moved towards me. I saw the look in her eyes when she looked up at me, and I wrapped my arms around her. She buried her face in my shirt, and her fists gripped the fabric.

"I don't want to talk about it." She mumbled, and I sighed. I wrapped her up tighter, and rubbed her back.

"Ziva." I said, and she shook her head.

"No Tony. No." She said, her voice cracking. I rested my cheek on the crown of her head, and rubbed her back some more. She sniffed, and then looked up at me.

"I have to go." She said in a scared tone. I rubbed her cheek softly, looking into her brown eyes.

"I still want to know." I said quietly. She looked like she could cry, but she blinked rapidly.

"I know." She whispered, turning away from me. I grabbed her arm gently, and pulled her back to me. I kissed her forehead softly.

"Please come back." I whispered, and she gave me a sad smile. She slipped something into my hand, and then moved away. I watched as she got into her car and drove away. I didn't look at the paper until I was inside, sitting on my bed.

_Leo's Café, 3 AM, Sunday._

I put the paper next to my bed, kicking off my shoes and collapsing under the sheets, finally falling asleep peacefully.

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**Again, thanks to princessjoey630 for allowing me to use her idea in here. I had to change it, as you can tell, to fit the story and the point of view I write in, but it's the basic idea that is in B12. So, credit to her!!! :D This is probably going to be my favorite chapter, as far as flashbacks go. I thought forEVER about the flashbacks and questions Annie could have. I have everything planned out in my head, so I'm screwed if I get knocked out.**

**Eh, it's too late. I'm going to watch Miracle again, my favorite movie of all time(right before Slumdog Millionaire & Longest Yard & The Proposal) and then go to bed. Maybe. I had a Rockstar energy drink earlier. Double strength too :D :D. Gah, Cold Case ended. It's 2 AM.... hence my rambaling. Sorry. I need to get in bed so my sunburn will go away.**

**Leave me love(reviews).**

**Izzy.**

**P.S. I've decied to watch 'Little House On The Prairie'. :D Okay, done rambaling.**


	5. Forever & Always

**Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter. I mean, really. And all the story alerts/favorites. It really makes my day. Which, btw, is super duper long. I didn't sleep again last night heh. But, this time I am okay. :D**

**Some really heart breaking interaction(for me) in this chapter. I mean, I know I could have NOT written it, but I have ideas, and I go with them.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own, yadda yadda, and if I did yadda yadda, I sure a heck yadda yadda, wouldn't be writing on here yadda yadda. I'd be getting Tiva together. XD**

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Some things, McGee would never understand. He didn't want to either. For him, it was better to not know. There were things he wished he understood, but knew he wouldn't. He accepted it. Although, there was one thing he refused to give up on. He wracked his brain, kicked himself, and looked over every picture and memory he had. Sometimes he thought he saw something in a picture; an expression on Ziva's face, a look that Tony was giving her, or the way Ziva held Annie to her chest. Other times, his memory only gave him things he already knew, and didn't serve purpose; the moment he found out they were engaged, or when Tony walked through the hospital doors to announce a baby girl had been born, the look on Abby's face when she first held the beautiful baby girl in her arms. Happy memories, memories that showed how much love their 'family' had for each other.

Happy memories, the only ones he was glad to have.

* * *

"What is this?" Annie asked, looking straight at McGee. He smiled at her, and looked at the laptop that was in her lap. We were sitting at Gibbs' house, Jenny cooking us dinner. She had offered about a week ago, saying that it was about time we all had dinner together. Annie and McGee were on the floor, McGee teaching Annie how to use his laptop. She was ever curious, and McGee's laptop had recently caught her eye.

"That is… well, I don't know." He said, moving his fingers over the mouse pad. He typed away quickly, and then smiled.

Abby walked in from the kitchen, her pigtails swaying side to side as she walked. Her platforms were ditched at the front door, and she was now at her real height. A roll of Sweet Tarts candy was in her hand, and she sat down next to Annie. I saw Annie eye the candy, and Abby smirked.

"Would you like the candy?" Abby asked, and Annie nodded.

"After dinner Abby." I said, and Abby frowned at me.

"You are no fun Tony." She said, and I shrugged.

"If you had a kid, you'd understand." I said, and she frowned at me.

"Of course I would." She said in a suggestive tone. I smiled at her, and grabbed the candies.

"After dinner." I said again, and Annie patted Abby's cheek.

"It's okay Abby. I can wait." Annie said, and Abby hmphed. Annie went back to watching McGee, and I smiled when she laughed at something he did. I walked into the kitchen, and sat down at the table. Jenny smiled at me, and handed me a cup of water. I held it in my hands, and looked at the clear liquid. I took a drink, and then put the cup down.

"How are you Tony?" Jenny asked as she walked around the kitchen. I shrugged, playing with my hands.

"I'm good." I said, and Jenny patted my back. She gently kissed my cheek.

"I'm glad. Annie said she was worrying about you." She said, and I looked up.

"When did she say that?" I asked, suddenly confused.

"Earlier, when you went out to get some wine. She was talking to Tim and Abby, and she said she was worried about you. Didn't say why though." She explained to me, and I sighed.

"We saw Ziva at the convenient store near our house. She's pretty smug about it too." I explained, and Jenny stopped moving. She sat down across from me, her expression serious.

"You saw Ziva?" She asked in a quiet voice.

"That was why she was crying at school last week." Jenny looked shocked, and she ran her fingers through her bangs. She got back up, catching the chicken just before it burned. After putting it all on a plate, and lining the food on the table, she looked at me. She gave me a sad look, and gently squeezed my shoulder.

"You'll be alright." She said, gently pulling at my hair.

--

Annie quietly slept in my arms as I carried her up the steps and inside when we got home. It was well after midnight, and Annie had fallen asleep at about eleven. I dropped the bag Jenny had given me when I left on the table, and then carried Annie to her room. I pulled off her shoes and pulled off her jeans. I grabbed her pajama pants and slipped the on her. She snuggled into her bed, and I smiled.

I changed into my pajamas, and sat on the couch. I didn't turn on the TV, instead reading the paper that had been dropped off. Most of it was news, how the world was doing, but I skipped to the sports section. I was half way through the basketballs stats when the doorbell went off.

I pushed myself up off the couch, dropping the newspaper behind me. I looked through the peep hole, and quickly unlocked the door.

"Ziva." I said as I opened the door, taking in her appearance. She stumbled a little, and I caught her carefully.

What skin I could see was either covered in bruises or blood; whose blood I didn't know. Her hair was a complete mess, and her clothes were splattered with blood. I could feel the blood smearing on my arms, and internally cringed.

I picked Ziva up and carried her back inside the house, shutting and locking the door behind me. I sat her down on the counter in the kitchen, next to the sink, and looked into her eyes.

"I'll be right back. Don't move." I said, and she nodded. I hurried down the hall, grabbing the first aid kit and a towel. When I got back in the kitchen, she hadn't moved. I turned on the sink, and got the towel wet.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, and I shook my head at her.

"Don't be." I whispered back. I wiped the blood off her face, and she shut her eyes.

"It is late." She said, and I scrunched my nose as she winced.

"It doesn't matter." I said quietly, and she grabbed my face. I was slightly taken back at the emotion in her eyes. She didn't say anything, and then her hands slipped off my face and back onto the counter. She let her head fall, and I sighed. I put the towel down, half way done with her left arm.

"Ziva, why are you covered in blood?" I asked, and she shook her head. I gently pulled her head up, and I pulled her to me when I saw the tears in her eyes. She wrapped her arms under my shoulders and hid her face in my chest. I found the spot on her neck that calmed her, and ran my finger over it softly. Her shaking stopped soon after, and she looked at me.

"Please don't ask me." She whimpered, and I wrapped my arms back around her. When I let her go, she wiped her nose. I picked up the towel again, and started to clean her off again. When I finished, I picked her up off the counter and carried her to the bathroom. She locked the door behind her, and I rested against the wall.

"Tony?" She called softly, and I turned my head in time to see her opening the door.

"What do you need?" I asked, and she looked down.

"Clothes." She said, and I nodded. She shut the door, and I walked down the hall to my bedroom. I grabbed a shirt and sweats, and made my way back down the hall. The shower had turned on, and I wasn't surprised at all.

"Ziva, I have the clothes." I said, and her hand popped out the door. I put the clothes in her hand, and the door shut again. I rubbed my face as I made my way down the hall way, and back into the living room.

"Daddy?"

I whirled around, looking down the hall. Annie wasn't out of bed, so I walked into her room. She was sitting up, rubbing her eyes.

"What sweet heart?" I asked, sitting down on the edge of her bed.

"Who's in the shower?" She asked, and I sucked in a sharp breath. Sometimes, I swore she was a mind reader.

"A friend." I said, and Annie raised an eyebrow at me. It was amazing how well she did that.

"Dad, that friend has a girl voice." She said, and I almost laughed. She said it with such confidence, and almost an air of smugness. I knew what she was thinking, and mentally kicked myself for even trying to lie to her. She had somehow been born a human lie detector, just like her mother.

"You need to go back to sleep." I said, and she crossed her arms.

"Dad." She said in a warning tone, and I finally chuckled. Annie glared at me, and I pushed her hair behind her ear.

"Annabelle, you have to go back to sleep. You are going to be very grumpy in the morning." I said, and she stuck out her bottom lip. I laughed, pushing her lip up.

"Annie, please. Go to bed." I said, suddenly in a happy mood. She seemed to notice, and she pushed herself up onto her knees. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I put my arm under her butt.

"I know she's in there daddy." She was confident, and she had a right to be.

"Annie."

"No dad. I don't want to go to bed. I am too awake." She said forcefully. I looked at her face, fighting a smile.

"Fine. But stay in here for now." I said, and she opened her mouth to protest.

"No Annie. Stay in here." I said again, and she stuck her tongue out at me. She wiggled out of my arms and onto the floor, where she grabbed her cat and sat down.

"Daddy says I have to stay in here Nathan." She said to the cat, and I got up. I patted her head gently before turning to go. I felt the tail of a stuffed animal hit my leg, and I smiled.

--

The water in the shower turned off, and I looked up from the newspaper in my lap. Ziva had been in the shower for over thirty minutes, in which time Annie said she was thirsty three times. I sent her back to her room each time, and each time a cat tail hit my leg. It only made me smile more.

Ziva walked out into the living room, the clothes I gave her swallowing her form. I got up immediately, and she wrapped her arms around my waist when I stood in front of her. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders, and kissed her hair.

"How are you feeling?" I asked her. She shrugged.

"I feel tired." She said, and I nodded. I helped her move over to the couch, and she sat down. I handed her a blanket and a pillow, and she looked up at me.

"I should not be here." She said, and I crouched down in front of her.

"Why?" I asked, and she squeezed her eyes shut.

"It is…. complicated." She said, and I sighed. I reached up and ran my finger down her cheek. She grabbed my hand, holding it in place and staring into my eyes. After a minute, she let go of my hand and looked down at the blanket I had handed her. She moved so she was lying on the couch, the blanket over her. I watched her wince in pain as she moved her legs and arms, and anger bubbled inside of me.

"Thank you Tony." She whispered, her eyes shut. I bent down and kissed her forehead, smiling.

"You know I'd do anything for you Ziva." I whispered back and she smiled slightly. But then she frowned.

"Even after…." She trailed off, but I knew what she meant.

"Ziva, I love you. Always have, and no matter what, I always will. Even if you disappear for six, almost seven, years. Nothing can change that." I said quietly, and she opened her eyes. She looked like she wanted to cry, but she shook her head.

"You can't." She said, and I shook my head. I placed my hand on her cheek gently, rubbing my thumb over her cheek bone.

"Ziva, even if I tried, I can't _stop _loving you." I whispered gently, and she shut her eyes again. Her face became distorted, like she was fighting something back and I got up. I walked into the kitchen, set on making myself a sandwich. I had just finished when I heard the pitter patter of little feet in the living room. I walked out just in time to see Annie's reaction to Ziva lying on the couch.

Her face scrunched up, and she looked like she wanted to run over and examine Ziva. But, she held herself back. She was watching her mother's chest rise and fall as she lounged on the couch, her legs over the edge, and her arms on her stomach outside the blankets. Annie took one step closer to the couch, Nathan clasped in her hands and to her chest. I saw her whisper something in the cats' ear, a habit that started when she was three. She talked stuff out, and she usually talked to any inanimate object closest to her.

I leaned against the door frame, holding my sandwich in one hand and putting the other in my pocket. Annie's face was full of curiosity, and she took a step closer to the couch. She froze when Ziva opened her eyes. They looked at each other, and then Annie walked right over to the couch. She stood over her mother, her head tilted to the side.

"Hi." Ziva said, sitting up. They were now at the same level.

"You are Ziva." Annie stated, tilting her head the opposite way. Ziva nodded.

"You are my mom." Annie said, this time more quietly. Ziva nodded again, biting her bottom lip.

"Yes." Ziva said, and Annie threw her arms around Ziva's neck. I saw the shocked expression on Ziva's face, and I smiled at her. She saw me, and saw my smile, and carefully wrapped her arms around Annie's small body. Ziva pulled Annie up onto the couch with her, and Annie curled up in Ziva's arms.

I hadn't seen them this close since Annie was one.

They were quiet, Ziva's cheek resting on Annie's head. I moved so I was sitting on the ground in front of the couch, my sandwich sitting on the coffee table. I saw Ziva's face as Annie nuzzled her face into her neck, and I reached up to touch her shoulder. Ziva stared at me. She mouthed my name, and I smiled.

"Comfort sweet checks." I said quietly, so Annie wouldn't hear. She shook her head.

"No, what is she doing up?" She whispered back, and Annie looked at her.

"Your shower woke me up. Daddy told me to stay in my room, but I was thirsty." She said matter-of-factly.

"Supposedly." I said, and Annie stuck her tongue out at me. I saw Ziva smile at this.

"You should be in bed." Ziva said, and Annie looked up at her. They were both quiet for a moment, and then Ziva kissed Annie's forehead. Annie looked up at Ziva.

"Are you staying?" Annie asked, and Ziva's face fell.

"I can't." She whispered back. Annie's face fell, and she looked away. I knew she had high hopes, and she wanted her mom back.

"Why not?" Annie argued, and Ziva sighed deeply. She shut her eyes and let her head fall back.

"It is complicated Annie." She said.

"I'm smart." Annie countered, and I reached up to touch her leg.

"Annie, leave it." I whispered, and she huffed.

"This isn't fair." She said, and I saw the small tears in her eyes. Ziva did too. She reached up and wiped them away, pulling Annie back to her chest. Annie silently started to cry, and I reached up to touch her face. She opened her eyes and stared at me, tears slowly flowing out of her eyes. I felt bad for her, knowing that she was really bent out of shape over this.

She shut her eyes again, and within ten minutes she had fallen asleep. I sat back and watched as Annie curled up into Ziva's side, under the blankets. Ziva moved to make room for her, and then she shut here eyes.

When they finally fell asleep, I grabbed an extra pillow out of the hallway closet, and lay back on the floor.

--

In the morning, she was gone. I woke up with Annie curled up next to me, the blanket that had been on her and Ziva now on me. I was kind of saddened, but then I saw a pile of clothes and a note.

_Tony, I had to leave. I left you your clothes, as you can see. Don't meet me at Leo's on Sunday._

I frowned at the ending, but I didn't mind. All I cared about was she was alive. Although, for how long and if she would stay that way were questions that haunted my mind.

When I got to work, Annie asleep in my arm, Lee was already teaching her personal class. The next class I had to teach didn't start for 20 minutes, so I settled for torturing McGee.

"Tony, did I miss something?" McGee asked, sitting back in his chair. He was prying his fingers from the gum I had flung at him.

"Nope." I said, smirking as he frowned.

"Yes, I think I did. You are happy." He said, and I shrugged.

"It is a good day." I said, and McGee raised an eyebrow.

"It hasn't been a 'good day' since Annie was born." He said, and I glared at him.

"Are you suggesting something?" I asked.

"Well, you are different today." Gibbs said from behind us, and I looked at him. He was standing in the doorway of McGee's little office, coffee in his hand.

"Did I miss a spot shaving?" I joked, and Gibbs shook his head. He was doing his weird mind trick, and I knew it was only a matter of time before he figured it out. McGee shook his head, finally getting the gum off his fingers. He threw it in the garbage, and then looked at Gibbs.

"What are you thinking?" He asked, and Gibbs shrugged. He walked away, and McGee looked up at me.

"Why am I always left out of the loop?" He asked, and I pointed at his chest.

"Actually, I am. But, for arguments sake, because you are inexperienced." I said, walking out of his office. Annie was standing there, her eyes sleepy.

"Daddy, where is mommy?" She asked. McGee looked up at me from his desk, Gibbs stopped walking in front of us, and Lee stopped short of what she was going to say. Gibbs, like always, was the first to speak.

"Mommy?"

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**First off: Anyone seems OOC, remember: Think about the description of Ziva, and think about how people in that situation act. And remember that they haven't seen each other for six years.**

**Okay, well some of you tried to guess what happened to Ziva. I'm sure that you won't be able to guess, even though you can guess what is happening to her now. Trust me, you won't be able to guess it. My mind went way evil on this and i'm feeling uber guilty about it. But, for the joys of FanFiction viewers, I posted this anyway. Because, i need to let some evil steam out.**

**I would greatly appreciate reviews. And, if you are feeling creative, a time/place/idea about where Tony can see Ziva again. Or, when Annie can see her mother again. Oh, I love Annie. She is one of my most favoritest OC's i've ever written.**

**Like I said, reviews?**

**-hugs and kisses, IzZzZzZy.(Erin writes my name like that a LOT:D)**


	6. If Everyone Cared

**_Social News: I guess celebrities don't really die in threes. At least four died last week. And BILLY MAYS!! Are you KIDDING ME?! I was so sad. :( And Micheal Jackson. Never liked him as a person, but his music was BOMB! And, oh Farrah. :( Okay, done with Social News. :D_**

**You guys can just imagine the converstaion between Gibbs and Tony. I left it out. It will come up later, maybe, but for now it's OUT!**

**I really like this chapter. I mean, I really do. So, enjoy.**

**And, for some background, Jeanne and Tony are neighboors. Friends, and they've known each other probably about as long as Ziva and Tony have known each other. :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, for that would be just amazingly awesome.**

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It was public knowledge that you never kept anything from Jethro Gibbs. You didn't try, and if you did, you failed. Kate tried to keep her private life secret, and it failed miserably. As it did with Ziva's attempts to hide her secrets. She succeeded at some of them. She was content in the fact that she was able to hide the death of her sister from everyone but Tony, who she told one night on a run. And much to Tony's amusement, Gibbs wasn't able to conclude that two of his employees were dating for over six months. Tony said it was all them, but McGee said it was a stroke of misplaced luck. Gibbs did, however, guess what Tony's phone call was about when he called to say he was engaged. And, he was at the hospital before Tony even dialed to say that Ziva was in labor.

So, everyone just about fell out of their seats when Gibbs was surprised to hear Tony's news that Ziva was gone.

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I watched from my desk as McGee stood in the pool, watching and helping Annie with her strokes. They were in the shallowest end, where Annie could stand up and the water would only be to her ribcage. She was working on floating at the moment, her face up towards the ceiling. She was trying to work on her backstroke, and McGee insisted that she work on floating.

"You're doing good Annie." He reassured her, and he put his hand under her head as she started to sink. I got up and walked over to the pool. I sat down on the edge, letting my feet fall into the water. Annie saw me and she swam over to where I was.

"Hi daddy." She said, holding herself up on the edge of the pool.

"How are you doing?" I asked, and she shrugged. She pushed herself off the wall, moving her arms up and above her head. It was a little awkward, but she had the basic idea. McGee caught her before she went too far, and she swam back to me.

"Good job." I said, pulling her out of the water. I handed her a towel, and she wrapped it around herself. I picked her up and carried her to my office. I handed her a shirt and shorts, and she pulled them on over her wet swimsuit. I grabbed my bag, and Annie took it from me.

"I want to carry it." She said, exiting my office. I shook my head as I shut off the light over my desk and followed her out. Gibbs was patting her head, giving me a stern look.

"_Ziver!" Gibbs called, and Ziva looked over at him. He waved her over, and she walked to where he stood. He said something into her ear, and she smiled._

"_I can do that." She said to him, and then she turned to me. She took my hand and gently pulled me out of the gym._

"_What did Gibbs want?" I asked her as we walked to where I parked my car. She smiled at me as she got in the car, and when I sat down, she leaned over and whispered in my ear._

"_He told me to keep you home tomorrow." _

_I looked at her, and she grinned._

"_You almost died today Tony." She said, and I shrugged._

"_Having some very very very angry dude hold your head underwater for a minute is now what I call almost. I think I blacked out for a minute or two." I said, and she laughed._

"_By the way, what did you say to him to make him so angry?" She asked, and I smirked at her. She rolled her eyes._

"_I told him that that sexy Israeli chick across the pool wasn't going to give him the time of day." I said, completely lying through my teeth. She quirked an eyebrow at me, and I just smiled._

"_l will get it out of you later."_

I unlocked the front door, and Annie bounded inside in front of me. She was heading to take a shower.

"Save some hot water, hey Annie." I said, and she nodded.

"Dad, I smell like chlorine. Yuck." She said, her nose scrunched up as she sniffed her own arm. I laughed at her, and she threw a glare my way.

"Take a bath then. Soak." I said, and she nodded. I walked into the living room, sitting down on the couch and relaxing. I heard the water in the bathroom go on, and I got up. I got changed into pajama like pants and a different t-shirt, and settled down onto the couch to watch TV. I was scanning through channels, not really paying attention. I looked up when someone knocked, and I got up slowly. I smiled as I looked through the peephole, and I opened the door.

"Hi Jeanne." I said to my neighbor, and she smiled.

"Hey Tony. Someone was here earlier, knocking on your door." She said, raising her eyebrows. "She looked a lot like Ziva."

I grimaced slightly; looking behind me to make sure Annie was still in the bath.

"What did she want?" I asked, and Jeanne pulled an envelope out of her pocket. I opened it, finding a note inside.

"Was it Ziva?" She asked, and I looked at her. She gave me a knowing look, and I sighed.

"Thanks Jeanne." I said, shutting the door. I didn't open the note, instead leaving it on the kitchen counter. I sat back down on the couch, rubbing my face.

"Daddy?" Annie said as she walked into the living room. She was wearing her pajamas, and her hair was hanging wet down her back. She walked over to where I sat, and I grabbed the comb off the table.

"How was your bath Annie?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"I don't smell like chlorine anymore!" She said, jumping up onto the couch next to me. I ran the comb through her hair, pulling the knots out. When I finished, she pulled her hair across her shoulder and clumsily braided it. Abby had been teaching her, and she was getting better at it.

"No, now you smell like….. peaches." I said, and she laughed. When she finished with her hair, she got up again and looked around the room. I watched her look from the table to the floor, obviously looking for something she had lost. Her head snapped up when she heard the knock at the door, and I caught her before she could answer.

"Annie, go to your room." I said, and she glared up at me.

"Why daddy?" She asked, and I pushed her down the hall.

"Because, I said so." I said, and she pouted.

"That is a stupid reason." She said as I shut the door, and walked back to the front door. I caught just a glimpse of Ziva before she launched herself into my arms. I staggered backwards, but caught myself before falling.

"Help me." She whispered, and I felt my stomach drop.

--

After cleaning Ziva off, and dressing her in clothes that weren't covered in blood and slashed, I sat on the couch with her sitting in my lap. She had locked her legs around my waist, and her arms were under my shoulders. It reminded me of a snakes grip. I was rubbing her back, frowning whenever her body shuddered. I whispered some soothing sounds in her ear, just as I did when Annie got distressed.

"Ziva, calm down." I whispered quietly, and she shook her head. I had been trying to calm her for over ten minutes, and even gently running my finger over her neck wasn't working. I felt her stomach bend again, and her body became heavier in my lap. I felt tears on my shoulder, and tightened my grip around her body.

"It's okay. I promise, it's alright." I softly whispered. She shook some more, and then she sniffed rather loudly. I thanked God quietly for Annie always screaming in that ear.

"I am sorry." Ziva said, and I looked at her face. I grimaced at the redness of her face, and I reached up to wipe the wetness away. She shut her eyes, letting out a long breath through her nose.

"We already went through this. Don't be sorry." I said softly, watching her face. She didn't open her eyes, and she let her head hang. I pulled her back into my arms, and she hid her face in my neck. I waited for her to unwind herself from me, but as close as I got was her scooting back in my lap. I kept my hands on her waist, holding her in case she decided to fall asleep and fall to the floor.

"I am bothering you." She whispered, and I shook my head. I took her face in my hands.

"Never Ziva. Sure, we've had little arguments and thrown each other into the pool," At this I got a smile, "But you never, ever, ever have bothered me." I said, and she blinked. I saw a small tear make its way down her cheek, and I wiped it away. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing her cheek against mine.

"I missed you Tony." She whispered, and I couldn't help but smile.

"Mommy!"

Annie's voice filled the room, and suddenly she was on the couch next to us. Ziva turned towards her, and Annie shot herself into her mom's arms. Ziva smiled, and wrapped her arms tightly around Annie. I held my arm around Ziva's back, making sure she didn't fall.

"Hi Annie." Ziva said. Annie didn't move her face, and when she did look up, she was smiling.

"Daddy told me to go to bed." She said, glaring at me. Ziva chuckled.

"Well, it is late. You should be in bed." Annie pouted.

"I don't want to be in bed. You always leave before I get up." She said, and Ziva smiled. She bent down and whispered in Annie's ear, and Annie's face lit up. She whispered something back, and I suddenly felt out of the loop. I watched them whisper back and forth, and then Annie threw her arms around Ziva's neck again. Ziva smiled at me, and I felt my stomach warm.

"Now, go to bed Annie." Ziva said, and Annie pouted again.

"I want to stay here. With you and daddy." She said quietly, and I touched her cheek.

"You have school tomorrow." I said, and she made a face at me.

"As long as you keep your promise." Annie said to Ziva, and she nodded. Annie jumped off my lap, standing in front of us. Ziva reached out and kissed her cheek, and she smiled.

"Good night." Annie said before she ran down around the corner and to her room. When I heard the door shut, I looked at Ziva.

"What did you say to her?" I asked, and Ziva shrugged. I could tell she was messing with me.

"Oh, nothing." She said, and I smirked at her. I inched my hands up her sides, and stopped when I reached her ribs. I saw her face twist as she tried to hide her laughter. I ran my fingers lightly over her ribs, and she struggled to stifle her laugh. Finally, she giggled. I finally cracked a huge smile, ecstatic that I could make her giggle after all this time.

"Okay, you can stop!" She said, and I moved my hands around her waist. I pulled her back into my lap, her legs moving from around to me to lie across my lap.

"I told her I would be here when she woke up." She whispered softly, and I looked at her face. She grimaced, and then shook her head.

"I am not expected back for a couple days." She mumbled, and I pulled her face up. She looked ashamed, and a little scared. I pulled her to me again, and she gripped my shirt.

"Why?" I asked, and she shook her head.

"No." She breathed, and I bit my lip.

"Are you going to ever tell me what happened?" I asked, and she looked at me. I could see she was thinking, her thought process obvious in her eyes.

"I'm not sure." She said, and I sighed.

"You know you can trust me Ziva." I said, and she nodded.

"I know. But, I do not wish to talk about it right now." She answered, and I shrugged. She yawned, and I wrapped my arms around her again.

"Time to go to bed." I said quietly, and she nodded. I lifted her off the couch, and carried her into my room. Once there, I put her feet on the ground and pointed to the bed.

"Sleep." I said, and she grabbed my arm as I exited the room.

"You are going to sleep in here, yes?" She asked. I nodded, and she smiled. I went down the hall to make sure Annie was asleep, and then shut off all the lights. When I walked back into my room, Ziva was laying on my side of the bed, her face in my pillow. She rolled over when I put my hands on either side of her face.

"You do remember which side of the bed is yours." I teased, and she nodded.

"This side smells more like you." She whispered, and I rolled onto the bed next to her. I didn't bother slipping under the covers, and I wrapped my arms around her waist.

"And this side hasn't smelled like you in years." I said even quieter, and she kissed my cheek.

"I _am_ sorry about that." She said, and I shrugged. I looked down at her. My brain was finally catching up.

"You really are real." I whispered, and she opened her eyes to look at me. She reached up and touched my cheek, smiling.

"I don't remember you being so soft." She said, and I laughed.

"You can blame raising a daughter for that." I said, leaving out the 'without her mother' part. But, like always, Ziva read me like a book.

"I should have been here." She said in a tone filled with regret. I frowned at her words.

"Ziva, you should be worried about that right now. You should be worried that one of those wounds might become infected." I said, and she shook her head.

"They are not deep enough."

"Ziva, it doesn't matter. Anything could have gotten into that cut on your leg." I said, and she grimaced.

"Can we not talk about that?" She asked, frowning as she shut her eyes. She moved into my arms again, hiding her face in my chest. I nodded, wrapping my arms around her and sighing.

"Do you promise you'll be here in the morning?" I asked, and she nodded.

"I cross my heart."

--

I woke up to the smell of food wafting into my nose and filling my head. I reached across from me, expecting to hit a nightstand, but instead hitting a warm body. I opened my eyes and smiled in joy at seeing Ziva still next to me. Although, she was dressed and wearing an apron that had been shoved in the hallway closet after she disappeared.

"Morning." She said, sounding more like herself. Her voice was still raspy, reminding me of when she had the horrible flue once.

"Morning sweet checks." I said, and she smiled at the use of her nickname.

"Who's making breakfast?" I asked, and she smiled.

"Go see for yourself." She said, and I got up. She followed me out into the living room, and when I got to the kitchen, I smiled. Annie was sitting at the table, a plate of food in front of her. I turned to Ziva, and smiled.

"Did I mention I missed you?" I asked softly, and she shook her head. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around my waist.

"And did I mention that I love you?" She asked, and I looked down at her. She smiled, and kissed me softly. I smiled at her, bringing her back into my arms.

"Once or twice." I whispered.

"Daddy, you have to try these pancakes!" Annie exclaimed, and I looked at her. Ziva looked over my shoulder, and I felt her cheek on mine. Annie's smile seemed to fill the room as she looked at her plate of food, her backpack hanging on the chair behind her.

"Her hair looks better when you do it." I said, and Ziva laughed.

"She said you've pulled out half of her hair trying to help her put it up." She teased me, and I shrugged. I swung her around so she was standing in the kitchen, and she laughed.

I smiled at the sight in front of me, but a little voice in the back of my mind kept telling me it wouldn't last long.

And it really didn't. Because, on the way to Annie's school, Ziva suddenly hid her face under the window and made a noise like a cornered animal. When I looked out the passenger side window, an Israeli man standing on the sidewalk was staring right back at me.

* * *

**DUN DUN DUN! Haha, I said I liked this chapter! :) Only like.... two people get what is going on. I bet you can guess who that is, but not WHY he is there staring at Tony, and making Ziva feel so scared she whimpers.**

**Review, and I promise this update will be faster. I just got sooo caught up in summer :D**

**Oh, and Girl Next Door is halfway done. Epilouge to be posted as soon as I finish. **

**So, Reviews please?**

**P.S: I got an ITOUCH for my birthday!!! YAY ME!**


	7. How Far We've Come

**Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter. :) I love getting reviews on this story, and they make me smile. I looked at them on my iTouch when I woke up and I was smiling from ear to ear at 7:35 in the morning. Great day. Great day.**

**Oh the other hand, this chapter is starting to get closer to you guys finding out what happened to Ziva. I think a couple of you have some ideas, or I told you, but you are honestly NOT going to believe what I did here. :D**

**Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS, or anything to do with it. Nor do I own the songs that are the titles of these chapters. Which, btw, are some great songs. They are on my 'Tiva playlist' which just got about 13 songs bigger. 83 songs....**

* * *

Annie and Ziva did many of the same things, solidifying Annie as her mother's child. Tony knew that drinking orange juice calmed them both down. He knew that rubbing the back of their necks also calmed them down. He knew that they made a puckered face after eating something too cold. McGee knew that they each were fighters, and wouldn't back down unless given a reason that they couldn't deny. Abby noticed that when eating popcorn, they would eat the whiter pieces first, and then the pieces that were covered in butter. They sat the same way on the couch, made the same faces, and at times, had the same laugh.

It always made Tony feel better.

* * *

Seeing as I wasn't going to get Annie to go to school now, she held the door open for me as I carried Ziva into the gym. Her face was buried in my shirt, and her fists had the fabric in a death grip. When the door shut behind me, McGee looked around the corner. His eyes fell on Ziva, and I could see his brain processing what he was seeing.

"Hi Tim." Annie said, and McGee looked at Annie.

"Hey Annie. Why aren't you at school?" He asked, looking back up at me. I glared at him, moving away from the entry way and closer to his office.

"Daddy drove here after mommy got scared." She said, and McGee disappeared. He came back out with a bottle of orange juice and his phone. Annie took the orange juice, and followed me to my office. When I got there, I put Ziva down on the mattress behind my chair. She clung to my neck, but I gently undid her hands.

"It's okay." I said softly, and she squeezed her eyes shut tighter. She felt around and when she found the blanket, she curled up underneath it. I watched her shake for a second before she let her face relax and she opened her eyes. I smiled at her, and handed her the bottle of orange juice McGee had handed Annie.

"Drink some." I whispered, and she nodded.

I gave Annie a look before slipping out of the room, and I saw Annie slip below the window. I was about to walk into Gibbs' office when he walked out.

"DiNozzo." He said, looking at his watch. "You actually made it in on time, and with time to spare." He said, and I smiled.

"Well, I didn't exactly drop Annie off at school today." I said, and he raised his eyebrow.

"Something happened with Ziva." He stated, and I wasn't the least bit surprised. I nodded, and he made his way around me. I followed him into my office, where I saw him crouched down in front of Ziva.

"Ziver." He said quietly, and Ziva looked up from her orange juice. She was still shaking, her hands gripping the bottle tightly. She reached up and wrapped her arms around Gibbs' neck, almost pulling him over in the process. Nevertheless, he kept his ground, and ended up pulling Ziva into sitting position. She hid her face in his neck, and he gently held the back of her head.

Ziva whimpered again, and I saw Gibbs flinch.

"What's wrong Ziver?" He asked her quietly, the fatherly side of him coming out. She started to whimper some more, and I felt an overwhelming urge to hold her close. Gibbs grabbed the bottle of orange juice and held it in front of her. I was glad we had discovered it calmed her down, or we would have been helpless.

"I do not wish to talk about it." She whispered back, sipping on her orange juice. She sat back on the bed and Gibbs stood up next to me. He gave me a look, and I didn't need his explanation. I sat down on the bed next to Ziva and wrapped my arms around her. She curled up on my lap, her fists once again holding my shirt.

"Drink your juice." I said quietly, and she obliged. I was surprised she was still upset, as it had been over twenty minutes since she had started to whimper.

"Tony, what happened?" Gibbs asked, sitting down next to us. He was watching Ziva closely with his eyes squinted.

"We were driving here, and she saw this man I guess. She hid under the window and started to whimper." I said, wincing as Ziva's hands grabbed some chest hair. Gibbs looked at Ziva again, his face completely blank.

"I am fine." Ziva said, trying to sound strong. But I could hear the wavering in her voice, and I shook my head.

"No, you aren't. Ziva, please tell me what's wrong?" I asked quietly. She shook her head, tears now rolling down her cheeks. I pulled her head back against my chest, smoothing her hair over her head. She stopped shaking momentarily, and then she nuzzled her nose into my shirt.

"I do not want to talk about it!" She said, sounding distressed. I shook my head at Gibbs, trying to get Ziva's breathing back to normal. He stood up, walking swiftly out of the office. Annie took his spot, reaching out and touching Ziva's face. Ziva was finally calming down, drinking the rest of her orange juice. I kissed her temple, resting my cheek on her head.

"You're okay." I whispered, and she nodded.

"I want to go home." She said quietly, choking as a sob escaped her. I shut my eyes, kissing her forehead. I was about to speak when Gibbs spoke behind me.

"Take her home DiNozzo."

--

When Ziva had finally fallen asleep, curled up on my side of the bed again, I sat down on the couch. Annie sat down next to me, hiding her face in my side.

"Daddy, what is wrong with mommy?" She asked, wiping her nose off on my shirt. I scrunched my nose, and she giggled.

"I don't know honey." I said, wrapping my arm around her waist. She twisted her mouth, obviously thinking.

"Well, someone has been hitting her." She stated, and I nodded.

"Yeah, someone has." I said bitterly, and Annie looked up at me.

"That is just wrong! Abby told me to never hit anyone, even though I have seen her hit McGee. But she said, Annie you never hit anyone. It's not nice."

"_Rallentare_ Annie. It's okay. I know that." I said, and Annie sighed.

"I know," She said, "But I want mom to be alright." I nodded at her words, kissing her forehead.

"We all do. Remember we all haven't seen her in years." I said. Annie sighed, getting up and grabbing her cat.

"We should try to cheer her up daddy." Annie said, and I chuckled. She was holding her cat to her chest, her chin resting on its head. She looked impossibly cute, and her eyes were bright.

"Annie, she's not feeling good. We should just-"

"Daddy! I know you want to make her happy again. Like in the stories you tell me." She said, bounding over to me. She put her hands on my knees and pushed herself up so she was looking into my eyes.

"It's more complicated than that." I said, and she puffed air in my face. I shut my eyes, and she grinned. I grinned back.

"Well, we can try." She said, trying to prove me wrong. I rolled my eyes. I lifted her up, carrying her down the hall and to my room. When I opened my door, I pointed to Ziva.

She was curled up under the blankets, her hands gripping the comforter I had thrown over her. My pillow held her head, and she was wincing as she dreamed.

"It's going to take a lot to cheer her up Annie. And if she goes back to… wherever she goes to, we are going to be back to where we started." I said. Annie shrugged.

"We keep her here." She said simply, and I laughed. I shut the door again, walking down the hall and looking out the window. Annie put her hands on the glass, fogging it up with her breath.

"That's not possible Annie. Whoever is hurting your mother will find her." I said, and Annie scoffed. I looked at her, watching as she spoke.

"Gibbs can protect her." She said with complete confidence, and I smirked at her.

"Gibbs can't do everything sweetie." I said, and she sighed.

"Well, he should be able to. Gibbs is magic." She said.

"Abby always says that. You've been spending too much time with her." I teased and she hid her face in my neck.

"I like spending time with Aunt Abby. But not her music. I don't like it; it is too loud." She said, and I smiled.

"Not many people can take her music." I stated, and she looked at me.

"Can you?" She asked, and I shrugged.

"It depends." I said, tickling her sides. She laughed, and I was glad I had distracted her. She pushed my hand away, trying to get me to stop. I grinned at her and continued to tickle her. We were in the middle of a tickle fight when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Mom!" Annie said, reaching out and wrapping her arms around Ziva's neck. I let go of Annie, and Ziva smiled.

"Hi Annie." She said, locking her arms under Annie. She moved her nose into Annie's hair, shutting her eyes. I wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her closer to the window. She stepped right up next to me, resting her weight against me. I smiled, kissing her head.

"I'm sorry we woke you." I said, and she shrugged.

"You guys sounded like you were having fun. I wanted to come see." She said, resting her cheek on Annie's head.

"Annie here was trying to convince me Gibbs can do anything." I said, and Ziva laughed.

"Even I know he can't do _everything._" She said, and Annie glared at me.

"Abby said he can." She said indignantly. I smiled at her. I didn't bother to argue with her, knowing that she wasn't going to budge.

"You should go back to sleep Ziva." I said, and she shook her head.

"I want to stay here, with you and Annie." She said, turning out of my arm and walking down the hall. I watched her walk for a second, and then caught up with her in the living room. Annie was showing Ziva the pictures on the table under the window.

"Dad told me this one was taken at the beach." Annie said, referring to the picture of Annie sitting in my lap on a towel. Abby had taken the picture one summer when she convinced me to take Annie to the beach. Annie had taken my sunglasses, and they hung lopsided on her head. I was grinning in the picture, laughing at Annie's silliness.

"It is a cute picture." Ziva said, running her finger over it. She let her finger travel to another picture, this one taken long before Annie had been born. It was the only picture I kept up that had Ziva in it.

"I remember this picture." Ziva said, picking it up. I put my hand over hers, and she smiled up at me.

"We were at the park for Abby's birthday party. McGee had a camera, and Gibbs made a joke about getting a picture of the new couple, because he had just discovered we had been dating for eight months." Ziva said, and I smiled.

"Yeah, and we were sitting on the bench, fighting over a piece of cake. McGee was trying to sneak up on us, and you knew he was coming. So you threw cake at him, and it hit his forehead. We started laughing as he took the picture with a huge frown on his face. It was priceless, the look on his face as he wiped the cake out of his hair." I said, and Ziva laughed along with me.

"Yeah, and he gave us the picture three days later with a frown on his face too." Ziva laughed, and I smiled. Annie looked at each of us, and then grinned.

"It's a very pretty picture." Annie said, and I smiled at Ziva. She looked down at the picture, and gently put it back on the table. I watched Ziva walk over to the couch and sit down, holding Annie to her chest.

"I'm sorry Annie." Ziva whispered, and I stopped. Annie looked up at Ziva with a questioning look.

"Why are you sorry mom?" She asked, reaching up and touching a scar on Ziva's arm.

"I was not here to see you grow up." Ziva said softly, touching Annie's hair. She ran her fingers through it, looking at the curls.

"It's okay mom." Annie said, tilting her head as she spoke. She was trying to catch her mother's eye.

"It is not. I missed out on everything." Ziva said, shutting her eyes and dropping her head. Annie grabbed Ziva's face, making her look at her.

"Mom, it doesn't matter." Annie insisted. She kissed her moms cheek, and I saw Ziva smile. Annie grinned.

"You still have tomorrow." Annie said, and Ziva wrapped her arms around Annie. I moved over to the couch, sitting down next to them. Ziva let herself fall into my arms, and I held her tightly.

"Are you feeling better now?" I asked her, and she nodded. I smiled, moving my arms so they were around her waist. I watched as Annie curled closer to Ziva, shutting her eyes and preparing to fall asleep. It wasn't even 12 o'clock yet. I lay back on the couch, and Ziva followed. We ended up laying parallel on the couch, my back against the couch and Ziva and Annie lying in front of me. I smiled widely, burying my nose in Ziva's hair.

"You are safe here Ziva. I promise nothing will happen to you." I whispered, shutting my eyes. I felt Ziva's hand cover mine.

"I know." She whispered back.

--

I woke up at seven to the sound of someone knocking at the door. I opened my eyes to see Ziva's hair covering my face, and a huge smile covered my face. Her head was on my chest, and her legs were wrapped around mine. I sighed as I detangled myself from her, trying not to wake her. Nevertheless, she did anyway. I was trying to walk to the door when she caught my hand.

"Where are you going?" She asked sheepishly. I reached down and touched her cheek.

"Someone is at the door." I said, and she nodded. She reached down and grabbed Annie off the floor, pulling her back into her arms. I walked over to the door, looking through the peephole to see who was there. But I didn't see anyone. Carefully, I opened the door. There was nothing outside, and I looked around. When I looked at the door, my stomach dropped.

Pinned to the door were three pictures; three pictures that I knew meant trouble.

* * *

**Any errors I'm sorry. I happen to be very warm and my body is quite lazy. I have to go load songs onto my old iPod for my mommy now.**

**But, I get to watch Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. :D I love LOVE Star Wars. An R2D2. Gotta love that little droid.**

**Reviews please? Those beautiful little things are what got you this chapter so quickly.**

**-Izzzay.**

**P.S: Zatl, fyi, I promise that you will find out what happened to our little Ziva soon. I PWOMISE!!! :)**


	8. Every Breath You Take

**So, you guys are going to _ _ _ _ this chapter. Put love or hate in there, it doesn't matter. Personally, I think hate. But, you could love it. Depends. **

**I want to say to Zatl; hee hee.**

**Disclaimer: I own this idea, and Annie. *growls***

* * *

Jenny never liked Eli David. Tony never liked Eli David. Gibbs didn't comment on it, but he didn't like the man either. No one took to him, and even Ziva was wary of her father. She ignored calls from him, and Tony would hear short bursts of conversation they had, in which he knew she was angry with him. One time, he heard her say something to the effect of leave me alone, and it scared Tony. Eli David was a scary man, a person Tony would never want to be in a bar fight with. After Ziva disappeared, Tony reluctantly called him. There was no emotion in his voice, no worry expressed or promise of looking out for her. When Tony told this to Gibbs, Gibbs had only one thing to say.

"I've never liked that bastard."

* * *

"Ziva!" I said, turning and walking back into the house. I locked the door as I did, moving into the living room. Ziva met me in the doorway, Annie in her arms. I pushed her back into the living room, shutting the blinds on the windows. When I turned around, Ziva was watching me closely.

"What is wrong?" She asked, and I looked at the pictures in my hand.

"I'm not sure…." I said, looking over the pictures again.

Each one scared me more than the last, but they all freaked me out. It wasn't the fact that they were here, in my hands, but more of the fact that someone was… taking them. The only way they could take them was if they were watching, and close. And they had been watching all day… or for the past three to four hours.

The first one was taken the earliest, after Ziva had fallen asleep. When Annie had pushed herself up with her hands on my knees, after she puffed air in my face and we both were grinning. Something about the picture made my stomach sink. I could tell it had been taken through the window, as the windowsill was at the bottom of the picture, but it was taken at a straight on angle. Just like the other two.

The one under that was when Annie and I were in the hallway, standing next to the window. Annie's hands were against the window, and her nose and face was pressed up against the window. I was looking at her, smiling as she opened her mouth to speak again, to argue.

As I looked at the last picture, I felt like I wanted to puke. This picture hadn't been taken long ago, as it was a picture of Ziva, Annie and I laying on the couch, asleep. It looked like the first picture, taken through the window.

I handed the pictures to Ziva, and she stiffened. I took Annie from her, moving away from Ziva so Annie didn't have to see the pictures.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" Annie asked, and I bit my bottom lip. I was about to speak when Ziva cursed in Hebrew. I turned to see her pacing in the living room, her hands on either side of her face. She was pulling on her hair, and the pictures were on the couch. I put Annie down carefully, walking over to Ziva. I caught her arm, and she twisted away from me. She took in a deep breath, and then dropped onto the couch.

"I am sorry." She said, and I sat down next to her. her breathing was uneven, and I could see her hands shaking.

"Ziva, what's wrong?" I whispered, carefully moving my arm around her. She was shaking slightly, her body wracking against mine. She buried her face in my shirt, gripping the fabric.

"Ziva." I said, and she shook her head.

"No." She whispered. I sighed, leaning back and pulling her with me. She twisted her body so her legs were across my lap, and then wrapped her arms around my torso. I rubbed her back, trying my best to calm her. She stayed curled into my chest until she fell asleep.

"Daddy." Annie said from next to me, and I looked at her. her hand was on Ziva's knee, and she was looking at me.

"Sweetie, you need to go to bed." I said, and she shook her head.

"No. I'm not leaving mom." She said fiercely, her eyes moving to Ziva's face. I saw the fear in her eyes and sighed. I lifted Ziva off the couch, carrying her into my room again. When I put her on the bed, Annie curled into her side. I watched as Annie wrapped her arms around Ziva's stomach, and Ziva's arm wrapped around Annie. I moved to the opposite side of the bed, sitting with my back against the headboard. I watched Annie and Ziva until I fell asleep as well.

--

"I'm not sure." Gibbs said, and I sighed.

"Gibbs, she is scared out of her mind." I said, looking out of the kitchen and down the hall.

"Has she said anything about what is happening?" Jenny said, obviously taking the phone from Gibbs.

"Just that she's scared." I answered, and Jenny hummed.

"Tread lightly, okay Tony? When she wants to tell you, just listen. Don't add input, or try to comfort her by saying that whatever is happening isn't her fault or is over. It will just make it worse." Jenny said, and I nodded. But then I remembered she couldn't see me.

"Okay." I said, and she hung up the phone. I smiled as I put the phone back on the hook, knowing she had gotten that habit from living with Gibbs.

I walked out of the kitchen and to my room, where Ziva slept. She had been asleep since the pervious day, Annie still snuggled into her side. It had been over seventeen hours since they fell asleep, and I was still waiting for Annie to bound out of bed and say she was hungry.

I moved into the living room, sitting down with my laptop. Gibbs had given me the day off to watch over Ziva, but I had to send in my reports for the week. I also had to do Michelle's and McGee's. Seemed like an unfair trade until Gibbs threatened to fire me.

"_You know what I'll do to you I you hurt her?" Gibbs asked me, and I raised my eyebrows._

"_Castrate me with a spoon?" I guessed, and he chuckled._

"_That, and fire you." Gibbs said, and I nodded._

I was halfway through my reports when I heard footsteps coming down the hall. I looked up as Ziva walked in, her hair a mess. She walked over to the couch and collapsed next to me, her head falling onto my shoulder.

"Hi Tony." She said, her voice groggy. I moved my laptop off my lap and wrapped my arm around her.

"How are you feeling?" I whispered. She shrugged, and snuggled closer to me. She moved her legs so they were up on the couch next to her, and wrapped her arms around my waist.

"I am rested." She whispered back, and I nodded.

"Is Annie still asleep?" I asked, and she nodded again.

"Does she _ever_ sleep?" She asked, her voice light. I smiled, kissing her forehead.

"She… sleeps. I'm not sure how well, but she sleeps." I said, and she nuzzled her nose on my arm.

"You did a good job." She said, and I nodded.

"I tried." I said.

She moved out of my arms, stretching her arms above her head. She sat back against the arm of the couch, her feet resting in my lap. I rested my hands on her legs, gently running my fingers over the soft skin.

"I was thinking." She said, and I looked at her.

"About?" I asked, and she sighed.

"The past six years." She said, and I nodded.

"What about them?"

She tilted her head to look at me, shutting her eyes and swallowing.

"You need an explanation." She said, opening her eyes. I ran my finger under her kneecap, and she let her head fall against the couch.

"Aren't you going to say something?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"Not really. I'll just let you talk." I whispered, and she stared at me a minute before shaking her head.

"Where do you want me to begin?" She asked, and I smiled. I reached over and touched her cheek.

"Start from the beginning, and work your way to the end."

* * *

**So, I am feeling a little bit bitter right now, and I think only Gemcity08 knows why. I would say why, but I like to keep people happy. *growls again***

**Just to let you know, don't be expecting any updates on this, and When You Say Nothing until Friday or Saturday. I'm going out to birthday dinner tonight with my BFF, and then staying at her house. Thrusday I have the market as always.**

**Reviews will make me feel a little happier, and less angry and pissed off.**

**-Izzy.**


	9. Out Of The Blue

**So, I guess I lied.. haha. I said Saturday.. it's Friday. Turns out I finished cleaning my house earlier than I thought I would, and the show i wanted to watch isn't on. So, FREE TIME!! :) yaya. Although, my cat left me this nice little... gift in the form of a half eaten mouse. Thanks Cleo. **

**So, Starbucks Coffee from costco and Cash Cab fueled this chapter. That, and my evil mind. I cried while writing some of this just to let you know.**

**Disclaimer: Oh, how joyous it would be, to own Tony! **

* * *

Tony and Ziva knew each other well. The understood each other's feelings, and didn't have to speak to get what the other was saying. Their most meaningful conversations had no words. When they opened their mouths, it was either innuendos and/or cracks at each other that was their form of affection. When Annie was born, they both showed more affection. Most of it was directed at Annie, but some of it was towards at each other. Tony was softer; being supportive and helping Ziva whenever he could. Instead of threatening his life, Ziva took on the motherly roll and sometimes would slip up and mother Tony as well. They struggled, and they fought.

But when they stopped talking, everything was alright.

* * *

Ziva shifted on the couch, moving so she was sinking into the cushions. I watched her carefully, watching her face as she thought. I remembered what Jenny told me, and didn't say anything.

"Remember when I told you about Tali?" She asked me, and I nodded.

_Ziva slowed to a walk in front of a hotel, stretching her legs as she waited for me to catch up. I stood next to her, and we watched as the rain fell. I handed her a coffee cup, and she smiled._

"_You're running slower this week." She said, and I smirked at her._

"_I have other things on my mind." I said, and she smacked my chest._

"_You're in front now." She said, and I laughed. We were quiet as we caught our breath and drank our usual morning coffee._

"_You know, you've never told me about your other siblings." I said, and she looked at me._

"_That's because they are all dead." She said, and I looked at her._

"_Ari was your only sibling?"_

"_No, I had a younger sister."_

"Well, she didn't die on accident." She said, and I tilted my head.

"She didn't die during a robbery?" I asked, and Ziva shut her eyes and shook her head.

"Not exactly. And Kate and Ari's death wasn't an accident either." She said. I bit my tongue, my confusion spiking.

"My father is… a horrible man. Yes, he is my father, but he has no love. He only wants control, and things to be to his liking. When I was younger, he practically ran our lives. We did what he wanted us to do. We didn't care, because what we did was what we loved. I did dance, Ari was into martial arts, and Tali was always into art and more material things. She did art classes. We all had schedules and we stuck to them. But, when we got old enough to voice our own likings, he got strange.

"Tali started dating a man she really liked. Father wanted her and I to have arranged marriages. So, he had a problem with her dating a man _he_ didn't choose. However, he said he approved and that made Tali happy. She was going to get married." Ziva's voice cracked, and I held her hand. She had never told me all of this, and I knew it was hard for her. I never told her about my parents, because she knew it was hard for me.

"The robbery was a set up, not an accident. The men who robbed the market she was working at were paid to go in, kill Tali and some of her coworkers." Ziva paused for a second, biting her lip.

"My father paid them to do kill her."

I opened my eyes and looked at her face. When I saw the tears on her face, I moved so I was sitting under her knees and I wrapped an arm around her. She let her head fall onto my shoulder, and I rubbed her back. I didn't say anything though, remembering what Jenny had told me. I let her find her voice. I rested my hand on her face, and ran my fingers over cheek.

"The driver that hit Kate and Ari was not drunk." She said.

"Your father paid him." I said, and she nodded. I felt tear drops fall on my neck, and she sniffed.

"He was even angrier at Ari because he was marrying a woman here in America and he had only met Kate once. I had actually spent time with Kate, and it was something my father envied. The night they died, my father stayed in his study. My mother said he did not come out, and when I went to visit in morning after hearing the news, he was still in there. It was not until later that I understood. He was in there all night planning and he knew the exact moment they were hit. He had them tailed."

Ziva shifted, and more tears fell on my neck. The lining of my shirt was soaked now.

"After Ari's death, I told my father I was leaving. He was furious with me, and said that if I left I wasn't going to come back on happy conditions. I knew about Kate's job, and I called Gibbs. He said he would gladly give me Kate's job and I could start as soon as I got to America. So I left, and came here. After a year, he started to talk to me again. I knew he was happy I wasn't dating anyone at that time, so he thought he still could arrange my marriage." She laughed then, but the sound was bitter.

"He got mad when we started dating, huh?" I asked her, and she nodded.

"I didn't tell him for a year. Like we did not tell Gibbs until he figured it out after six months."

"Which was pretty amazing." I added, and she chuckled. I smiled at the sound.

"He found out when I called to tell my mother I was pregnant." She said, and I bit my lip.

"My mother was excited, while my father was furious again. He asked me why I didn't tell him, if I was going to get married, when the due date was. All of that. It was one of the only times I talked to him in five years, and all of his words were bitter and angry at me." She paused, and moved so she was leaning back against the couch arm.

"Remember when he flew out here, and Gibbs and him got into that argument?" she asked me, and I nodded.

"And Gibbs told Eli to shove off if all he wanted to do was cause pain?" I asked, and she nodded. A slight smile crossed her features.

"My father was angry about that, telling me later that Gibbs was not my father, and he should not be bossing him around. I told father that Gibbs had been a better father in four years than he had been in over thirty years. I saying that made him furious, and that was why he left." She said, and I nodded. I reached over and touched her face. She let her head rest in my hand, nuzzling her nose against my palm.

"I did not bother to call to tell him you had proposed. I knew he would not care, and he would only get angrier with me. Turns out, he knew anyway. He had someone following us, telling him what we were doing. Therefore, he knew when Annie was born, and he knew her name. He knew when I started to wear the ring that we were getting married.

"I am sorry for not telling you before about my suspicion. I should have told you that I thought my father was going to… kidnap me and take me back to Israel. I was just afraid. I knew that I could not stop him, even if you knew. That morning on my run, when I saw him, I knew there was no getting away. I should have called you, or left a note…" Ziva's voice cracked again, and I wrapped her up in my arms. She started to sob, her body shaking and bending in the weirdest places. Her fingers dug into my back, and I winced as they moved across my shoulders. She was breaking down in my arms, and I could only hold her.

I had _no_ clue what to say.

I could have told her I was sorry, and that I didn't blame her. I could have said that I still loved her, and even if her father was controlling and evil, she had better places to be. She had a daughter to take care of, one that was missing her mother more and more. One that was going to need her mother in the next few years of her life, years that I had no expertise in.

"I'm sorry." I whispered into her ear, rubbing her back gently. I knew it wasn't going to do much, but her shaking hadn't stopped. Finally, she stopped crying, but her body kept shaking.

"He forced me to marry a man when he found out I wasn't married to you yet. I had no choice, because he always threatened to kill you and Annie. I wish I hadn't gone with him. Micheal Rivkin is just as evil as my father, and I can't get away from him. Whenever I try to tell someone…h-he-"

Her voice stopped, her chin starting to tremble violently. Her teeth were chattering, and the hands that were on my back started to shake. I wrapped my arms around her again, and she kept shaking. I couldn't stop the shaking, no matter how much I whispered in her ear, or rubbed her back. So finally, I decided to ask her.

"What did he do to you Ziva?" I asked, and she shook her head. I gently grabbed her arm, holding it up in her face so she could see the massive scar. She shut her eyes, pushing me away.

"Ziva, he did that to you. I know he did. And now he's thumb tacked pictures to my door." I said, and she glared at me.

"I think I know that Tony. I have been living in hell for five years, not knowing if I will wake up the next morning because the newest cuts and bruises hurt so much. He has made my life hell, and it is all because my father does not have the decency to leave me with the people I love." She exploded at me, getting up off the couch and pacing across the living room. I watched her carefully, noticing that she was shaking now more than before.

"Ziva, you need to calm down. I'm sorry for upsetting you, but you need to calm down." I said, and she glared at me. She took two deep breaths, and then she sat down on the ground. She let her head fall into her hands, her shoulders shaking. I moved so I was sitting in front of her, putting my hands on her knees.

"It is not your fault." She said, looking at me. She frowned, reaching up and holding my cheek. I put my hand over hers.

"Micheal is working here now, so we moved. That is when I saw you and Annie, and I found out that Micheal knew your address. I am sorry if I freaked your both out." She apologized, and I shook my head.

"It's okay Ziva. I'm just... so glad you're alive." I said, reaching over and pulling her into my lap. She hid her face in my shirt, her hands lying gently on my back. I smiled as she kissed my neck.

"I feel better now." She whispered, and I nodded.

"I would hope so. You just unloaded a lot." I whispered back, and I could feel her lips smiling against my neck. The knot in my stomach was going away, and the sinking feeling of my heart had stopped. I looked down at Ziva, and she smiled weakly at me.

"What do we do now?" She asked, and the knot came back. I looked at the clock, sighing as I saw it was early in the morning.

"We go to sleep." I said, and she nodded. I lifted her up off the ground, carrying her into my room.

--

I watched Annie and Ziva play cards, looking over the pictures and waiting for the phone to ring. Gibbs had a friend on the police force that was going to call. After telling Gibbs most of what Ziva had told me, he had decided that it would be better to take action than let Ziva go back.

"Tony, are you ever going to open up the blinds?" Ziva asked from the living room, and I shook my head.

"No." I answered, looking at the pictures. The phone rang, and I reached over to answer it.

"Hello." I said, and I heard a man take in a breath.

"Tony DiNozzo? This is Gibbs friend Fornell; he said you might need some help." The man said, and I sighed. I moved out of the kitchen, telling Fornell what had been happening. When I finished, he sighed.

"You said he moved her five years ago, for work?" He asked.

"Yeah, that's what she told me."

"Well, Gibbs seems pretty fond of her, and from what you've told me, this doesn't sound good. I'll have to talk to Ziva, and if she wants to press charges she can. Do you think you can bring the pictures in so we can dust them?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Sure can." I said.

When I finished my phone call, I walked back into the living room. Annie and Ziva were wrestling, and I could tell Annie was being very careful. I sat down on the couch, and Annie jumped into my lap.

"Is everything better now?" She asked, and I looked at Ziva. She widened her eyes at me, and I glared back at her.

"Not exactly Annie." Ziva said, reaching up and touching Annie's face. Annie pouted.

"Can I know what is going on then?" she asked, and Ziva grimaced.

"It is not something you need to know honey." She said. Annie crossed her arms, but didn't speak. Ziva smiled, reaching out and picking Annie up. Annie laughed, wrapping her legs around Ziva's torso and her arms around her neck. I watched as they bounced around the room, Annie laughing as Ziva tickled her. They stopped moving when someone knocked on the door, and I got up. I walked over to the door, but stopped short when a voice filtered through the wood.

"Ziva?!"

I turned to see Ziva stiffen, and her face flash fear. I reached out to her and she shook her head. She put her hand on the back of Annie's head and disappeared Annie's room.

"Ziva, I know you are in there." The mans voice said again, and I turned to the door. I clenched my fist as I opened the door to see the hairy Israeli man standing there.

"You wouldn't happen to be Michael Rivkin, would you?" I asked, and he glared at me. His eyes went over my body, and then he smirked.

"You would not dare try to fight me." He said, and I shrugged.

"Good bye then." I said, slamming the door and locking it.

The door shook as Micheal banged on it, and I reached for the phone.

"Yeah, Gibbs. We've got a problem."

* * *

**I bet you did NOT see that coming. Any of that. Well, besides the whole Micheal Rivkin thing. Since I think he's an EVIL EVIL EVIL man, he is always going to play the EVIL EVIL part in my stories. Or I can put Micheal Locke in. Have you guys noticed that there are a lot of guys named 'Micheal' on the show, characters and actors? And they all have some connection to Ziva?**

**Review, and I might update this weekend. But, I'm going to be super busy, and then next week my best friend is coming up from San Diego. And then next weekend, I go camping. I promise to write a bunch by hand while I'm gone. :)**

**-Izzy.**


	10. Blue Morning, Blue Day

**You guys can throw tomatoes at me if you want for not updating. I know I should have updated sooner and all. Hehe. Yeah, I lost my inspiration for a while(*coughsilentfallingraincough*) and I was expecting to get angry reviews.**

**Speaking of angry reviews: I was reading one of my friends reviews, because she mentioned that people start yelling at her when she doesn't update soon. I just wish to say one thing about that. Leave writers alone. If they don't update for like... a couple months, then start yelling. But, a couple weeks leave them alone. We ARE people, and we have a LIFE!**

**Kay, just saying. Okay, ON WITH THE STORY! Warning, this has some kind of Tiva fluffiness in it. :)**

**Disclaimer: If you wish to know, I wanted to buy NCIS, but I decided I wanted iTunes more.**

* * *

Gibbs thought of them as his children. And they were, no one could deny it. He had known Abby since she was a teen, and he and Jenny had been her surrogate parents. Her real parents lived too far away from her to be there when she needed them. Jenny knew Tony longer than Gibbs, and soon Gibbs was just like Tony's father. The same had happened with McGee. Ziva met Gibbs at the hospital, and as Ziva tried to hide the tears, Gibbs kept a reassuring hand on her back. From the beginning, they had been close. As time went on, Gibbs saw his 'children' become parents and go through hard times.

And he decided that if anyone was to try to hurt them, he'd be there to protect them.

* * *

"The most I can charge him on is spousal abuse Jethro. You know that." Fornell said to Gibbs, looking over his shoulder at Rivkin. He was sitting in the police car, his arms hand cuffed behind his back. Ziva was right next to me, her face behind my back. She had been hiding her face since Rivkin arrived.

"Thanks." Gibbs said, turning to where Ziva and I stood. His eyes went over our standing position, and then he sighed.

"Ziva, come here." He said, and she moved around me. Gibbs embraced her in a hug, and she hid her face in his shoulder. I felt a small hand grab my pants leg, and I picked up Annie. She wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Daddy, who was that man? He looked at me funny." She said, and I looked to see if Ziva was preoccupied to tell her.

"That was moms husband." I told her, and Annie stared at me.

"You and mommy never got married?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"We got engaged. Never married." I said, and Annie sighed.

"Why not?" She asked, sounding defiant. Once again, her fairy tail picture was being shattered.

"When she disappeared, our wedding was about three weeks away. You were going to be the flower girl." I said, and she tilted her head.

"What's a flower girl?" She asked, and two hands lifted Annie out of my hold.

"A flower girl throws flowers as she walks down the aisle." Gibbs informed her, and Annie giggled. She reached up and pulled on Gibbs' hair, and he cracked a smile.

"I would have been a good flower girl?" She asked, and Gibbs nodded.

"One of the best." He informed her. He looked over at me, his smile fading slightly.

"I'll take Annie for the night. Jen is cooking lasagna." He said, and Annie squealed.

"Jenny's lasagna is the best!" She said, and Gibbs smiled. I kissed Annie on the cheek before grabbing Ziva's hand and pulling her back inside. As soon as we walked through the door, she buried her face in my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, not sure what to do. I hadn't seen her this way since… ever.

"Ziva?" I asked, and she looked up at me.

"Yes, Tony?" She said, moving out of my arms and down the hall. I followed her, and smiled as she shut the door in my face.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, and I heard her grunt. Two seconds later, the doors opened back up and she walked out wearing _only_ my OSU shirt. I rolled my tongue, and she grinned at me.

"I am quite alright." She said, walking past me and down the hall. I watched her go, smiling to myself as she swayed her hips more than needed. She knew I was watching.

"Are you sure?" I snapped out of my trance, walking up behind her and wrapping my arms around her waist. She settled back into my embrace.

"I am sure. I feel better now." She whispered, and I kissed the crown of her head. "Besides, Micheal cannot get to me now."

I pulled her over to the couch, pulling her into my lap. She snuggled into my chest, and I smiled.

"No, he can't."

--

Ziva was curled up on the couch, a plate of rice and chicken in her lap. I poured her another glass of orange juice, carrying it over to her. We had spent most of the day on the couch, watching movies like old time. I had finally convinced her to watch the newest James Bond movie when she said she was hungry, and I realized it was getting late and time for dinner. She refused to let me cook, so she ended up cooking what ever she could find.

I had to go grocery shopping.

"Do you keep orange juice in hold storage?" She asked, and I smirked at her as I sat down next to her. She moved up close to me, letting her plate rest partially on my thigh.

"Cold storage, Zee-vah." I said, and she nodded. "And kind of. Annie drinks like three glasses a day." I said, and Ziva smiled. She looked down at her plate, looking slightly bashful. I lifted her chin up so she was looking at me.

"Are you blushing?" I asked, and she smacked me. I smiled at her, and she picked up her fork.

"No, I am just gloating in the fact that Annie takes after me more than you." She teased, and I stuck my tongue out at her.

"Does not." I defended, and she shrugged.

"You're right, she jokes way too much. And do you know what she said to me earlier?" she asked, and I shook my head.

"She said, and I quote, 'This reminds me of a movie.'" Ziva said, and couldn't help myself. I started laughing. Ziva shook her head at me.

"Tony, you are raising a movie buff." She said, and I shrugged.

"Better than a super ninja." I teased, and she shook her head again.

"At least if she was a ninja, she would be able to defend herself." Ziva mumbled, and I touched her cheek.

"She's fine Ziva. She's with Gibbs. You know he won't let anything happen to his Ans." I said softly, and she nodded. She put her plate on the table, grabbing her glass of orange juice. I wrapped my arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to me on the couch. She wrapped her arm around my waist, looking up at me. She rested her glass on her chin.

"How is Abby?" She asked randomly. I shrugged, picking up the phone.

"Call her. Invite her over so you two can talk." I suggested, and she looked up at me. She looked hesitant as she took the phone, dialing Abby's number. I was surprised she still remembered it. She got up off the couch, walking down the hall and out of my sight.

"Hello Abby." I heard her say, and then I could have sworn I heard Abby scream.

"Abby, calm down. Abby, Abby!" Ziva said, and then I heard silence.

"I am at Tony's." She said, and then she looked around the corner. I smiled at her, holding up her orange juice. She padded over to the couch, plopping herself down into my lap. I gave her the juice, and she smiled at me.

"Yes Abby." Ziva said. She hung up, and leaned across me to put the phone down on the arm of the sofa. I wrapped my arms back around her, and she took a drink of her juice.

"Abby is going to pick up McGee and then come here." She stated, and I nodded.

"Good old Probie-Wan-Kenobi." I said, and Ziva chuckled.

"Why must you call him that?" she asked, and I shrugged.

"McGeek loves his nicknames!" I said, and she shook her head. I smiled at her, leaning down and kissing her cheek. "Just like I know you love yours sweet checks."

She glared at me, but then smiled.

"As do you, my hairy butt." She said with a smirk, and I laughed.

"How do you know it's still hairy?" I teased, and she smacked my chest. She moved out of my lap and onto the couch, turning her attention back to the movie. I watched her, noticing that she looked suddenly sad. What did I say?

"Ziva, are you okay?" I asked, and she nodded.

"Fine." She said, rather coldly. I reached over to her, taking her hand. She looked at me, and sighed.

"I am sorry Tony, but I get a little… scared at the thought of…." She trailed off, and my eyes widened.

"Oh, Ziva." I said, pulling her to me. She wrapped her arms around my neck, hiding her face in my shoulder. I rubbed her back softly.

"I didn't realize Ziva. I'm sorry." I whispered, and she sniffed.

"It is not your fault." She whispered back.

"I should have seen this coming. I should have been there with you on your run. Then maybe he wouldn't have done these things to you." I said, and she looked into my eyes. She moved her hands from my neck to my face.

"You couldn't have stopped him from raping me." She stated, and I winced. That word sounded worse aloud than in my own head. She saw me wince and kissed me.

"Do not worry. I made sure to protect myself." She said, and I scrunched up my nose.

"Ziva." I started, but she stopped me from talking by kissing me again. I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her closer to me.

"You aren't getting me off the subject." I mumbled into her lips. She smiled at me, kissing me again.

"I wasn't trying to." She said, and I laughed.

"What were you trying to do?"

"Nothing. I just missed your kisses." She said, kissing me one more time. There was a knock at the door and she jumped off me, pulling my shirt down over her butt. I smirked at her.

"You know McGee is on the other side of that door as well." I said, and she glared at me.

"He won't mind. He has eyes for Abby." She said, and I shrugged. When she opened the door, and flash of black attacked her.

"ZIVA!" Abby screamed, picking Ziva up off the ground and spinning her around. Ziva laughed loudly, wrapping her arms around Abby's neck.

"It is good to see you too Abby." Ziva said as Abby set her down, grabbing her face. Abby squealed again, and McGee caught her before she launched at Ziva again.

"Careful Abby." He said, and Abby smiled at him.

"It's Ziva, Timmy." Abby said, and he smiled. McGee hugged Ziva, and she smiled.

"I do not mind McGee." She said, hugging Abby again. Abby smiled, pulling Ziva into the living room. They sat down next to me, and I patted the ground with my foot.

"Come on McProbielicious." I said, and McGee smiled at me. He sat down on the ground in front of Abby, and Ziva smiled at him. She reached down and pulled my shirt over her butt again, and I smirked at her.

"Where is Annie?" Abby asked.

"With Gibbs and Jenny." Ziva said, moving out of Abby's arms and into mine. I smiled at her, wrapping my arms around her waist. Abby pouted at me, and I grinned.

"She's mine." I teased, and Abby laughed.

"Sure sure." Abby joked. She reached down and grabbed McGee's tie.

"Scoot closer." She said, and McGee moved so he was right next to Abby's legs. Abby put her hand on his head, and Ziva tickled his face with her foot.

"Ah, this is so great. Ziva is here, that awful ass of a husband is going to the big house at the moment, and now Ziva is here, and all of this is great. Oh my gosh, how is Annie taking this? The other day, she said she was really happy and she was all like-"McGee cut Abby off by putting his hand over her mouth, and she looked at him. He shook his head, and she nodded.

"Got it, shut my mouth." She said, and Ziva laughed.

We spent the rest of the night sitting in my living room, drinking beers and talking. By the time we were done, Abby was asleep with her head in McGee's lap, and Ziva was wearing pants.

"She looks weird asleep." Ziva said softly, propping herself up on her elbows and tilting her head at Abby. She was lying on the floor in front of McGee, watching Abby sleep.

"How does she look weird? She always looks weird." I said, and McGee glared at me. "Well, I mean, she looks pretty weird…" I trailed off, and Ziva laughed.

"Putting your… foot in your mouth." Ziva said carefully, and I smiled.

"You got that one right. Good job." McGee said, and I nodded. Ziva beamed, but then she looked at Abby again. She reached up and pulled on her pigtail.

"It has been a long time." Ziva said, laying her head back on her arms. I shifted on the couch, turning so I was on my stomach.

"Since what Zee-vah?" I asked, and she looked up at me. There was a huge question mark in her eyes.

"Since we have been together. All of us, that is." She said, going sentimental on us. I reached down and touched her back.

"Yes, it has been a long time. And you're saying?" I asked, and she glared at me.

"I am saying it is nice. I missed it." She said, and I smiled. I let myself fall off the couch next to her, laying my arm across her waist.

"What else have you missed?" Abby mumbled, stretching her arms above her head. She smiled up at McGee, and then looked at Ziva. She was waiting, and rather impatiently.

"Do you want me to list them all?" Ziva asked incredulously. Abby nodded, settling in to listen.

"Uhh, Abby?" Ziva asked, and she nodded.

"Just list a couple then. I understand if you're shy to tell us them, but I want to know more than just you missed us." Abby said, emphasis on the 'us'. I smiled at Abby, and then turned my head to Ziva. She looked at me desperately, and I just shrugged. She sighed, letting her head fall back onto her arms.

"I missed you guys, of course. And Annie, Gibbs and Jenny." Ziva started, and Abby nodded.

"Who wouldn't miss Gibbs?" She asked, but no one answered.

"That is really about it." Ziva said, and Abby laughed. She moved off McGee's lap, and right in front of Ziva.

"You aren't telling us everything."

"There is nothing to tell Abby."

"Lie."

"Abby, I am not lying."

"Abby, maybe you should-"

"No McGee, I will not leave it." Abby snapped, pointing at McGee. He swallowed, and nodded. Abby turned back to Ziva.

"Abby, I am being honest. I cannot think of anything else." Ziva said, and Abby sighed.

"I shall get this out of you, Ziva David."

Abby rolled back over, looking up at McGee.

"Time to go Timmy." Abby said, standing up and reaching out to him. McGee got up, not taking Abby's hand until they were both standing. I waited until the door shut to turn to Ziva.

"Ya' gonna to tell me?" I asked her, and she glared at me. She reached down and pulled at her pants, turning onto her back.

"No, I am not." She said, and I shrugged. I looked up at the clock, and smiled.

"I have to go to bed. Work in the morning." I said, and Ziva smiled. She got up and disappeared down the hall. I shook my head as I walked into the bathroom, grabbing my brush and brushing my teeth. When I walked out into the hall, Ziva jumped up onto my back and kissed my cheek.

"Ah, my sneaky ninja." I said, carrying her into my, no, our room. When I dropped her onto the bed, she pulled me down with her. I rolled off her instinctively, and she smiled at me.

"I am tired." She said, and I waved my arms around me.

"We are in a bed, and 'tis night." I said with an accent, and she giggled. I pulled the blanket over her, wrapping my arms around her and burying my nose in her hair.

"I missed you." She whispered, kissing my collarbone. I hummed into her ear, squeezing her gently.

"I missed you too." I whispered back, and she smiled against my skin. She moved her hands under my shirt, wrapping her arms around me.

"I love you." She whispered, and I smiled before letting myself fall asleep.

* * *

**Kay, so might seem like it's slowing down. Don't worry, the problem of "Ziva-is-still-married-to-Rivkin-and-not-Tony" needs to be resloved. Hehe, I have this story planned out in my head, and this chapter is just like.... Ziva, Abby, McGee, and Tony spending some quality time together. And the relationship of Tony and Ziva. I know that Ziva may seem OOC and all, but she's recovering from trauma. **

**Also, haha, I watched Bounce today. My mouth dropped to the floor at how much Gibbs said in the episode. And PALMER! I adore him. :D "Tell Ziva I'll poke her.... on Facebook." That made me die of laughter. Okay, now that I'm done... I just.. yeah. I need to sleep.**

**Reviews would be nice, and I don't mind if you kind of chew me out for not updating. I hope this gets Zatl (or Zats as I like to call her) the inspiration to update on "An Unexpected Assignment."**

**-Isabel.**


	11. That Was Yesterday

**I'm starting to realize that my updates have become longer and longer apart. Sorry, for the wait and all, but I'm working on it. :) As of the moment, I'm working on this, a one shot collection, and something for my new obsession Royal Pains. :)**

**Anyway, this story is NOT done yet. But it's getting close. About... four or five more chapters. I have this _planned_ out like you wouldn't believe. I even know dialouge for the last chapter. Ah, I'm so excited.**

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, neither you or I own. Anything that you don't recognize, I own. **

* * *

Jenny could remember when Annie was born. Tony had been extremely nervous, his hands shaking as he waited to be allowed into Ziva's room. Gibbs and Jenny had been sitting at home when Gibbs stood up and said they had to get to the hospital. Abby talked in long, unstructured sentences the whole time Ziva was in labor, only stopping when McGee put his hand over her mouth. She wanted to be in with Ziva, but her and Tony had planned that Gibbs would be there during her labor. Therefore, when Gibbs walked out with a blue apron like thing around his body, and a soft smile on his face, Abby jumped up and demanded he tell. He kept his mouth shut though, and then everyone saw Tony holding Annie.

Needless to say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

--

"Hi daddy!" Annie said through the phone, and I could hear she was fumbling with it. I smiled as I walked into the kitchen.

"How are you Annie?" I asked, and she blew air on the phone.

"I'm good daddy. I stayed up and helped Gibbs on his boat." She declared proudly, and I laughed.

"How late Annie? You do have school." I said, grabbing the hot glass of tea and walking back down the hall.

"Not that late daddy. Jenny is dressing me right now. Hey, that tickles." Annie laughed, and I held the phone away from my ear as she shrieked.

"We'll get her to school." Gibbs said through the receiver, and I smiled.

"Thanks Gibbs." I put the tea down on the nightstand next to my bed, and sat down next to Ziva's sleeping body.

"Take the day off today. Take care of Ziva." Gibbs said, and I looked down at Ziva. Gibbs hung up before I could respond, and I put the phone down. Ziva rolled over and looked up at me.

"Gibbs gave you the day off?" She asked, and I smiled at her. She sat up, stretching her arms over her head. As my shirt moved down her arms, I saw bruises on her shoulders. I winced at the shapes of them, and then they were out of my sight. She got up and made her way into the bathroom, and I heard the water running.

"We are going grocery shopping." She stated, and I nodded. Then I remembered she couldn't see me.

"Sure." I answered, getting up and walking into the bathroom. I sat down on the vanity, listening to the shower water run. She looked out at me from behind the curtain, her hair stuck to her head. She gave me a quizzical look before disappearing.

"Are you sure you are alright Tony?" She asked, surprising me. I sat up straighter, pushing my pajama pants over my legs.

"Positive." I said, and she huffed. A washcloth hit me in the face, and I couldn't help the smile that broke out on my face.

"Hey, that smells nasty." I said, and she laughed.

"I only threw it at you, I did not use it." She defended, and I laughed.

"Sure." I said, and the water shut off. I grabbed a towel off the shelf, and wrapped her up in it as she walked out. Her hair dripped on my arm, and I noticed how skinny she had gotten yet again. That, and I noticed the bruises on her upper body that I hadn't seen. I could only guess that she was covered in them.

"Tony?"

I blinked at Ziva's voice, and looked down at her. She had tucked the towel around her, and her hair was pulled to one side.

"Yeah?" I asked, shaking my head. She tilted her head at me, resting her hand on my cheek.

"Nothing." She answered, walking out of the bathroom. I followed her, sitting down on the bed and letting myself fall back. I shut my eyes, and smiled as Ziva curled up next to me. I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her right up next to me. She pushed herself up and pulled my eyes open.

"Time to go." She said, and I smiled.

--

"I do not get this." Ziva said, and I walked up behind her. I took the banana from her, and laughed.

"It's a miniature banana." I said to her, and she pushed me. I smiled at her, taking her hand again. She pushed the shopping cart, and I followed behind her. I still couldn't believe she had dragged me into this. But, Annie would be happy. And maybe I could get Ziva to gain some weight back. She looked too thin.

"You can stop staring off into the distance." Ziva said, and I smiled at her. I put my arms on either side of her, bending my head down to talk into her ear.

"What are you hungry for?" I whispered, and she shivered. I smiled at the reaction.

"I am not hungry." She said, and I chuckled.

"Ziva, you are very thin." I said, and she looked at me.

"What are you saying?" She snapped, and I kissed her cheek.

"What I'm saying is that you've lost _a lot_ of weight." I said, and she glared at me. I glared back, and she shook her head.

"Like I did not know that." She mumbled, and I kissed her cheek again.

"I'll make you anything you want." I said, and she glanced at me.

"You'll make that pasta you always made?" She asked, and I nodded. She smiled at me before pushing the cart forward, and I followed next to her in silence.

I noticed she wasn't wearing a ring. She had obviously taken off whatever ring Rivkin had given her, and it made me smile. The engagement ring I gave her she hadn't ever taken off, and some times in the morning, I woke up to her searching for it in the bed. Annie liked to play with it on Ziva's finger as well, but I think that was because it was so shiny.

Looking at Ziva as she walked, I saw how loosely her clothes hung on her body. As she reached for something on her shelf, her shirt she was wearing fell back off her arm. I'm pretty sure I wasn't the only person to notice the yellow tinge of her arm.

"Ziva, let me get that." I said, reaching around her and grabbing the bag of chips. She looked at me, a question on her face.

"What's wrong Tony?" She asked, and I looked around. An older lady was glaring at me like she wanted to kill me with her purse.

"When you reached for the chips, I could see your bruises. And so could that old lady over there." I said, and Ziva looked around me. She waved at the old lady, and then she smiled.

"Miss, is this man bothering you?"

I turned around in time to see the old lady walk over to us, her purse in front of her. I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

"Not one bit ma'am." Ziva said, smiling at the woman. The woman glared at me before turning back to Ziva.

"Are you sure honey? That is a nasty bruise!" She said, reaching over to touch Ziva's arm. Ziva grimaced, and I knew she was uncomfortable. I wrapped my arm around her waist, and turned to the woman.

"I assure you, I would never lay a hand on her." I said, and the woman looked at me again. She looked at me carefully before smiling.

"You better young man." She said before walking away. Once she was gone, Ziva turned to me.

"Did she really believe you were beating me?" She asked, and I nodded. I turned back to the cart, keeping my arm around Ziva. Once she was sure I had enough food to feed Annie until she moved out, we paid and left.

--

"I am surprised you do not have a rat problem." Ziva teased as she threw away yet another molding bag. I stuck my tongue out at her, and she chuckled as she grabbed some more rotting food. I put the cold food away in the fridge, and Ziva walked up next to me.

"I am not hungry for lunch." She said, walking away from me and to the garbage can.

"That's your problem." I said, and something hit my head. I laughed, shutting the fridge and turning to look at her. She was pushing something into a cabinet, her fingertips just barely keeping the box from falling on her head. I stood up straight, walking over to her and pushing the box into the cabinet. She smiled up at me, relaxing back onto flat feet and walking out from under my arm. I caught her waist before she made it too far.

"So tell me, what happened to the engagement ring I gave you?" I asked, and she smiled. She reached down into her shirt, pulling a necklace. She unclasped it, holding it in front of my eyes.

"Right here." She said, letting the ring fall into her open palm. I took it from her, smiling at the tiny stone.

"_Tony, she'll love it!" Abby squealed, holding the ring in her hand. She held it up in front of her face, looking at it closely._

"_I hope so." I said, and Abby smacked my arm._

"_Tony, she loves you, you have a kid on the way, and you've been together longer than anyone I know. Well, not like together together, but you've been best friends since forever. If she doesn't say yes, I'll find a way to boil her until she does." Abby said, and I coughed._

"_Isn't that a bit far Abby?" She shook her head._

"_Not one bit."_

"Annie always loved this thing." I said, and Ziva smiled. She took the ring from me, slipping it on her ring finger. She looked at her hand, twisting it from side to side. Finally, she looked up at me.

"Going to keep that on now?" I asked, and she smiled. She wrapped her arms around my waist, hiding her face in my shirt. I circled my arms around her shoulders, and kissed her head.

"I almost didn't wear the ring on my run. Almost. However, at the last second I put it on. When… everything happened, I took it off and hid it. H-he got angry that I had it still on my finger. So, I bought a chain and put it there. The chain was long enough that it was never seen, and I took it off before bed and put it in my pillow." She said, moving her head so her ear was against my rib cage.

"I like to think it kept me going, knowing that I still had a small piece of you and Annie with me at all times." She whispered, and I kissed her hair.

"Annie still has Nathan, the cat you gave her. She talks to it all the time." I said, and she looked up at me. I nodded, and she smiled.

"I was wrong. She does take after her father."

"Hey!"

She laughed, moving out of my arms and out of my sight. I walked through the living room and saw her slipping into Annie's room. I followed her into here, finding her sitting on the ground in front of Annie's dresser, the one we had painted.

"I remember painting this." She said, and I sat down next to her. She ran her fingers over the wood, smiling.

"Abby wanted to help, but I convinced her that we had it covered. We spent all day sitting out front, Jeanne joining us every now and then, and when we finally finished Abby had _accidently_ shown up." Ziva laughed, pulling Annie's stuffed cat off the dresser. She ran her fingers over the fur, smiling. She handed it to me, and I frowned at it.

"It's…. crunchy." I said, and she laughed.

"Annie probably chews on it." She said, and I laughed.

"That's just great." I mumbled, throwing the cat away from me. I sat back on the ground, watching as Ziva looked around the room. Her eyes went over the wall, and then she turned so she could see the bed. She let herself fall against the dresser, her hand resting on my foot.

"What time is it?" She asked randomly, and I pointed to the clock next to Annie's bed. She looked at it, and a smile spread across her face.

"It is time to pick up Annie from school, yes?" She said, crawling over to me. I looked at the clock, and then at Ziva's face right in front of me.

"It sure is." I said, getting up. Ziva walked in front of me, her hair swishing as she turned to face me. I caught her before she fell, and she smiled.

"Calm down there." I said, and she frowned at me.

"Who said I was excited?" She asked as I pushed her out the front door, locking the door behind me.

"You're eyes won't shut up." I whispered in her ear before she got in the car.

--

Kids were everywhere. I mean, everywhere. It wasn't until I got out of the car that I heard the panic.

"What do you mean, just disappeared!?"

I followed the sound of Gibbs' voice into the school, finding him in the office. He looked pissed, fuming, angry, raging; pick one. Ziva's hand immediately found mine.

"Sir, I don't know what to tell you. One minute she was standing out there, waiting for you as she had said, and the next second she was out of my sight. I don't know what happened." Annie's teacher said. I put my hand on Gibbs' shoulder, and he turned to face me. His eyes softened for a minute before they flared up again. He saw Ziva, and then he ran his hand down his face.

"Annie's gone." He said simply, and Ziva inhaled sharply.

"You mean, gone gone?" I asked, and he smacked the back of my head.

"Yeah, got it." I said, and Ziva turned to me.

"He took her. You heard her. She said he looked at her funny. Remember? Oh, he took my child." Ziva rambled. I held her face, shushing her as I tried to calm her down.

"Ziva, it's alright. Calm down." I whispered, and she hid her face in my neck.

"Tony, Rivkin has our baby. He has Annie." She whispered. I looked at Gibbs, and he seemed to see my silent plea. He put his hand on my shoulder as he passed, his phone already on his ear. I pulled Ziva a little closer to me, my fear hitting me. Ziva kept mumbling, her body shaking as she got extremely scared. I could feel the fear rolling off her in waves. However, only one thing she kept saying got through my haze.

Rivkin kidnapped Annie.

* * *

**Dun...Dun...Dun... I know some of you saw this coming. I know, I know, predictable. My 'muse' is taking me to a dark corner and giving me a knife. Evil, is what I'm saying. Ah, so I'm feeling extremely lazy and I'm probably going to start going on a$$ kicking run tonight, and the next.... and the next.. haha. Summer is great, but I don't do much. Causes me to gain weight. Blehh. Not fattening weight. I can tell, no one else can. Anyway, I'm going now. Law & Order SVU is on, and I adore that show, and I have to make lunch for three other people.**

**Kill me, but not really. Leave me reviews. :) If you caught any kinds of mistakes or anything, tell me. I happen to be so out of it I can't edit right now. Do what I used to do on GND, and leave me your favorite line. :D**

**-Izzy. **


	12. Open Arms

**I'm so sorry for the wait. I got totally stuck on one part, and I was like grr and just pissed so I stopped. Then, after writing some of the ending chapter, I got an idea for this chapter. Even though I already knew what was going to happen. For once, I know what's going to happen in a story, and it's completely planned. REally proud.**

**Anyway, this is shorter, but where I stopped it I had good reason too. The next chapter will most likely be longer. Side note, the beginning of this chapter is just like the beginning of every other chapter, in third person, but I decided to put something with Annie in it. some insight to what happend with Ziva over the six years of dissaperance.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own, nor will I ever, so you can all take a hike or fly a kite. Besides, I'm just happy right now with my DSL, which I got the other day and now I am updating and I'm super happy, how about you?**

* * *

Annie wasn't feeling the room she was in. She looked around, frowning at the color. A dark, dark black. Her eyes went over the bed that was perched against the wall, and then to the chair that was across the room. Her hands trembled as she touched the chair, noticing the dents. As she started to count, she realized that there were more than the numbers she knew.

"There has to be over a-a thousand!" She whispered to herself, running her finger over the dents. All of the dents were grouped together, and there were six lines of dents in all. She noticed that the last line wasn't as long as the rest. She started to count, trying to calm herself. Maybe if she busied herself, she wouldn't be so scared. And just maybe she'd forget about the dark haired man in the other room, talking in a language she didn't know. She was up to two hundred marks when the door opened and she started to shake again. She turned around to see the dark haired man standing there, his hand in his hair.

"What do you want?" She snapped, trying to sound confident. The man laughed, and Annie backed away from him.

"You are just like your mother." He stated, and Annie tilted her head. She noticed the wedding band on his hand, like Gibbs', and frowned.

"You're my mommy's husband, aren't you? She doesn't like you." She snapped, this time sounding a little more confident. And just a little bitter.

"I know she does not like me. But, she does not have to." He said, turning on the light. Annie noticed how high up the switch was, and wrinkled her forehead.

"Why doesn't she? Isn't marriage about love?" Annie asked, trying her best to hold her hands still. The man shook his head, and laughed.

"Not always." He laughed, and Annie crossed her arms. He was mocking her, and she didn't like it.

"However, I do love your mother." He said, and Annie frowned.

"So does my dad. And she loves him." She retorted, and the man nodded. He sat down on the dented chair, and Annie moved as far away from him as possible.

She didn't like the man, but she decided to try to be civil. After seeing the bruises on her mother's arms and legs, she knew what he could and would do.

Moreover, she also decided to name him Harry. No matter what he said his name was.

"So, Harry." She said, and he glared at her.

* * *

I locked the door, and closed blinds on the windows before walking back into the bedroom. Ziva was still shaking, despite being asleep, and her hands gripped the sheets. I sighed at the sight of her, walking over to the bed and lying down next to her. I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her to my chest. She stopped shaking, and her breathing quieted.

"Do you think she is okay?"

I looked down at Ziva, noticing the tiny tears on her bottom lashes. I wiped them away before answering.

"She's either cracking under the pressure or making witty remarks." I said, and Ziva smiled. She looked around her, and then back up at me.

"Why am I in a bed?" She asked, and it was my turn to smile.

"You got a little upset, remember? I took you here and you've been sleeping ever since." I explained, and she sighed. She pushed off my chest, standing up and stretching. She looked at me before disappearing out of the room. I stood up, following her. I found her in the kitchen, grabbing a water bottle.

"We have to help find her." She said, and I shook my head.

"No way Ziva. You need to rest." I said, and she glared at me.

"That is _our_ daughter Tony! He has her! For all we know, he has her in that god for saken room he kept me in!" She yelled, and I stopped. She was under too much stress, and I could see the scabs on her arms stretching as she threw her arms up in the air. Arguing would make it worse.

"I know Ziva. I know." I said quietly, the tension that had sparked in the air dying. She sighed, moving over to me and wrapping her arms around my waist. I rested my cheek on her head, holding her close.

"We have to do something Tony. I cannot just sit here and wait for someone to call." She whispered, and I kissed her hair.

"Neither can I, but what are we going to do?" I asked, and she sighed heavily.

"It's impossible to find his house." She said, and I noticed she didn't say 'our'.

"How so?"

"Have you ever tried to find Camp David?" She asked, looking up at me. I shook my head.

"If you tried, you would not ever find it. It is well hidden, and not on any map." She said simply.

"You know this how?" I asked, and she shrugged. I shook my head.

"So, you're saying it's impossible to find?" I asked, and she nodded.

"To those who don't know where it is." She said.

--

"I can't believe I agreed to this." I said again, and Ziva smile at me from the driver's seat. Her driving was as erratic as ever.

"You are easily persuaded." She said, and I laughed. She swerved down the road, and I held onto the side.

"How no one's taken away your license is a miracle." I said sarcastically, and she shook her head. She stopped the car at a stop sign and furrowed her brow together. The sky was darkening as clouds built up, and I knew it was going to start raining. "He actually let you out of the house?" I asked, and she threw a glare at me.

"I was not his total prisoner. I was allowed to go out." She snapped, finally turning the car left.

"That was the only reason I can remember how to find the house, and how I found you and Annie." She said, slowing the car down. I looked out the window, frowning.

"Ziva, it's a forest. A thick forest." I said, and she smiled.

"Not when you know what to do." She said slyly, pulling the car over and turning it off.

"Ziva-"She cut me off, pointing to a car ten feet away from us. I tilted my head to the side, and she got out. I followed her as she made her way into the trees, touching each one she walked past. Looking down, I saw a path was beaten into the ground.

"Do you-"

"Shh." She said, turning to glare at me. I put my hand over my mouth, and she smiled. We walked in silence, and I suddenly stopped.

"No kidding." I said, and Ziva smirked at me.

In front of us, a small, cozy looking house sat in a clearing. The path led right up to the front door. Ziva stopped me before I could go further, and I watched as she listened. Her hearing was always better than mine. She tilted her head to the side, and then looked at me.

"Something is wrong." She said, and I frowned.

"What?" I asked, and she looked back towards the road.

"I cannot hear anything." She said, moving forward.

"Ziva, I'm beginning to think this is a bad idea. Maybe we should go back." I said, and she grabbed my hand.

"Too late."

She dragged me forward, her eyes scanning the house. She pulled a key out of her pocket, and I grabbed her hand.

"What if he's here?" I asked, and she stared at me.

"It is too quiet." She said, and I threw my hands up as she proceeded inside. I followed her carefully, cringing at the mess everywhere. Not just the mess, but stains and marks all over the walls and ground…

"She's not here." I was pulled out of my trance by Ziva's panicked voice, and I looked up to see her entering a room down the hall. I followed her, and almost threw up when I saw the room. Now I knew why Ziva was panicking.

On the floor, next to the end of the bed, fresh blood had pooled. I pulled Ziva away before she touched or disturbed it.

"Ziva, don't." I whispered in her ear, and she shook. She started to mumble in Hebrew, Annie's name mixing with the language. I heard Rivkin once or twice, so I pulled her out of the room by the waist and took her outside. Once there, she kicked the ground. I pulled her too my chest, trying to get her to calm down. My hands shook as I rubbed her back, and a sob broke from her body.

"Okay, be positive. It might be Rivkins." I said, saying it more for myself. She shook her head, and looked up at me.

"Tony, Tony, Tony, that… that room. He had her in that… oh my… tha-that room." She stammered, and I wrapped my arms around her tighter. She was too stressed. Way too stressed.

"Ziva, I need you to calm down. Remember what the paramedics at Annie's school said. You need to relax or you'll pull the scabs that are starting to heal and the bandage on your arm will come off." I said, and she hit my chest. I grabbed her hand before she could hit me again, and I saw fire in her eyes.

"Do you know what he did to me in that room?" She yelled, and I shook my head. She broke free from me, moving away.

"I don't think I want to know." I said, and she nodded.

"You really don't." She said, and I couldn't help my smile.

"Contraction." I said, and she glared at me.

"What?"

"You used a contraction." I said, and she stopped her pacing. She started to laugh, the sound echoing off the trees and the house. I watched her go into hysterics, her hand covering her stomach as her eyes filled with tears. I grabbed her before she fell, and she took deep breaths to stop her laughter.

"Did I miss something?" I asked, and she shook her head.

"I just… was remembering that time you told me I didn't use enough contractions. I asked you what a contraption was." She said, and I grinned.

"We need to call the police." I said, and she sobered up.

"Yes, that we need to do."

--

The sound of dogs barking must have caused Ziva distress, because she was soon curled up against my side in the back seat of my car. We had been told by Fornell to sit and wait, as they didn't want to lose another civilian out there in the trees. Apparently, the report of a missing child in the middle of the woods, where a small house had been built against anyone's knowledge got the presses attention, because there were now reporters behind a police barricade. I think that also got to Ziva.

"Do you have a blanket?" Ziva suddenly asked, and I shook my head.

"I have an extra jacket." I said, and she held out her hand for it. I handed her it and she wrapped it around her shoulders. The rain was barely drizzling, but it made the forest look enchanting when it was anything but. I heard people yell, and a dog started to bark crazily. Ziva looked out the open door, her hands grabbing mine that rested on her thighs.

"She's found something!" A man yelled, and I held onto Ziva as she started to gravitate towards the barking. She listened intently, and I could see the concentration on her face as she tried to see through the fog.

"What is that?" Someone said, rather loudly. I then heard Fornell tell them to not touch it, no matter what.

"It looks like a sock." The first man yelled, and Ziva looked up at me.

"A sock? They found a sock?" She asked, and I gently flattened her hair.

"Annie's smart, you know that. She's very capable of taking care of herself."

"She is in a forest, with most likely a wound." Ziva spat, and I gently rubbed her thighs. I knew she was worried, as was I, but she showed it in a different way.

"The dogs would have found her by now if that was her blood, don't you think?" I asked, and she sighed.

"I really hope it is not hers."

We sat in silence some more, the reporters chattering lulling in the background. I could hear them trying to get our attention, even though we were 100 yards away and in a car.

"Hold on, I think- I've got something!" Someone yelled, and I sat up straight. Ziva leaned forward, and I could suddenly feel the rain on my face.

"I found her!" A man yelled, and Ziva stood up. She was about to run when she stopped, turning to look at the crowd of reporters. Her lips twisted into an angry scowl, and I grabbed her waist before she moved.

"What?" I asked quietly, and she glared at the crowd 100 yards away from us.

"He is over there, watching like some... Some-"She was at a loss for words, so I twisted so my back was too the reporters and she was out of sight. I kissed her cheek softly, wrapping my arms around her waist.

"Stay here." I said, and she nodded mutely.

"Sir, sir! We found your daughter." A rookie agent said, and I glared at the man. He swallowed, and nodded.

"Right, well she won't move. Says she wants her mom." The man said, and Ziva looked at him. Ever so slowly, Ziva took the man's arm and followed him into the mist. When I turned back around, Rivkin was gone.

* * *

**Ehh, a mini cliff hanger. Just a mini one. Next chapter will have a lot in it, i think. I have still yet to write it. But, for now, I leave you with this and an apology if I dont update sooner next time. I want to finish this before *grimaces* school starts *sobs*. So, I shall be hurrying.**

**Leave me a review. :) Thanks.**


	13. Hold The Line

**Sorry for the wait. It's not long of a wait, but I really should get back to updating every other day. But, I'm pretty sure this is the second to last chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with NCIS. It's owned by brilliant minds at CBS studios, in Las Angeles California.**

* * *

Annie sat in her mother's lap, waiting for the doctor to end this useless check over. She did _not_ want to be in the hospital. She wanted to be at home, with her parents. She wanted to be sitting in her father's lap as her mother sat next to them, talking quietly to her. She wanted to be home, not here in the hospital. As the doctor spoke, she didn't hear anything. She hid her face in her mother's chest, trying to make herself disappear. Someone touched her back, and she waited for her mother to move. When she finally did, Annie wrapped her arms around her mother's neck and waited to get home. When they reached the car, Annie wasn't surprised when her father leaned across the seat and kissed her cheek.

"I love you sweetie." He whispered before starting the car and heading home.

* * *

Annie shifted in my lap, her legs lying across my lap. I knew she was tired, and that she was still a little shaken up about what had happened. Ziva was next to me, her hand running up and down Annie's back. We had been sitting like that for over an hour, Whose Line playing because Annie had asked. It was the only thing she had said since Ziva carried her out of the forest and into the ambulance. I looked at Ziva and saw the concern etched on her face. She widened her eyes at me, and I bent over to kiss her cheek.

"I know." I whispered, and she sighed. She got up off the couch, and Annie reached out for her. I bit my lip, looking up at Ziva. She swept Annie out my arms quickly, and I watched as she gently rocked Annie in her arms. I turned down the TV, watching them stand in the middle of the room.

"Shh Annie. I have you." Ziva whispered softly, kissing Annie's messy hair. I could only guess it would be a pain to comb out.

"I know mom." Annie said, and Ziva looked down at her. She looked at me quickly, and I got up and stood next to her. I put my hand on Annie's back, reassuringly rubbing small circles. She sniffed loudly, turning in Ziva's arms to look at me. Her eyes were wide in the semi-darkness, and I kissed her head gently.

"You know what he said to me?" Annie said, and I shook my head. Ziva closed her eyes, and I put my arm around her.

"No." Ziva said. I moved her over to the couch, setting them both down. Ziva started to whisper quietly to Annie, and I moved to the kitchen to get some tissues. When I walked back in, Annie was asleep. Ziva had moved on the couch, so she was laid out flat. I sat down on the ground in front of them, handing her the tissue. She wiped the wetness away from Annie's eyes, and I put the tissue on the table.

"She is tired." Ziva whispered, reaching towards the blanket at her feet. I pulled it up and over them, placing a kiss on Annie's head. Ziva sighed heavily, turning over. Annie stayed curled into Ziva's chest.

"I don't blame her." I whispered back, and her hand found my hair. I watched as she shut her eyes, massaging my scalp. I smiled at her, grabbing her hand out of my hair and bringing it to my lips.

"Go to sleep." I said, getting up. She opened her eyes to watch me.

"Where are you going?" She asked, and I pointed towards my room.

"Bed." I said, and she nodded. I noticed the sad look in her eyes, and sighed. I walked to the hallway closet, grabbing some blankets and extra pillows. I laid them out on the floor, and Ziva smiled at me. She let her hand fall over the edge of the couch, and I gently grabbed it.

"Better?" I asked, and she nodded.

"Thank you." She whispered.

It wasn't long before her breathing calmed, and I heard soft snores. A smile broke out on my face as Annie's hand joined her mothers, and I fell asleep surrounded by my family.

--

The sound of someone knocking on my front door woke me up, and I suddenly felt the pain shoot through my body. I looked around me, seeing Annie's small face right above mine. She had twisted in Ziva's arms, her head hanging over the edge of the couch. I moved her body into a more comfortable position before moving to the door. I looked through the peephole, preparing myself before opening the door.

"Tony!"

Abby threw herself at me, and I stumbled backwards. I shushed her, smiling at McGee as he quietly shut the door. Abby smiled at me, putting her fingers over her mouth. I pointed to the living room, where Abby happily skipped off too. McGee shook his head at her, and I nodded.

"They look happy." McGee stated, and I nodded. Abby sat down on the pillows I had slept on, her hand resting on Annie's face.

"They are. At least, I think." I said, and he nodded. Annie woke up, looking up at Abby.

"Aunt Abby." Annie said, reaching up and locking her arms behind Abby's neck. Abby picked her up and Ziva woke up immediately. She smiled at Abby.

"Hi Abby." Ziva said, sitting up. Abby sat down, and the three of them started to talk quietly. I motioned for McGee to follow me, and we walked into the kitchen.

"How is she feeling?" He asked me, and I shrugged.

"She didn't talk for a while. But, now she's better." I said. McGee nodded, reaching into the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. I heard Annie laugh, and I smiled.

"Abby wouldn't leave me alone. She kept saying we had to come visit." McGee said, and I threw a piece of paper at him. He glared at me.

"Aw, poor Probie." I teased, and he shook his head. I couldn't miss the smile that crossed his face though.

"Daddy, I'm thirsty." Annie yelled, walking into the kitchen. She was still in her clothes she had worn the day before, and her hair was a mess. I picked her up, putting my finger on my lip.

"Shh Annie. It's quiet time." I said, and she nodded. I wrapped my arm around her, and McGee handed her a water bottle. I smiled as Annie reached out and kissed McGee's cheek.

"Hi Timmy." She said, patting his cheek. He smiled at her, ruffling up her hair more than it already was. She squirmed out of my arms and skipped back into the living room. I smiled at her retreating form.

"She is happier." McGee said, and I nodded. He grabbed my laptop off the counter, opening it up and getting on the internet. I sat down next to him, listening to the sounds from the living room.

"Gibbs gave us all the day off." McGee said suddenly, and I nodded. I grabbed my laptop, signing into my e-mails.

"Crap, e-mails from clients." I mumbled, and McGee laughed.

"Annie, leave that alone. I'm going to get a comb." I heard Abby say, and suddenly she was in the kitchen.

"Where is a comb? I need to comb out Annie's hair." She said, and I pointed to the hall.

"Bathroom, next to the sink." I said, and she disappeared.

"Mommy, Abby's going to hurt my head." Ziva laughed, and she walked into the kitchen holding Annie.

"No, I will make sure she doesn't." Ziva promised, and Annie crossed her arms. I smiled at her, reading over another e-mail. It had been a while since I'd been in. I guess this counted as a vacation.

I looked up as Abby started to run the comb through Annie's hair, and Annie became dramatic. Ziva rolled her eyes at me, and I shrugged.

"What?" I asked her, and she rolled her eyes.

"She got this from you." She accused, and I shrugged.

"She did not." I defended, and McGee laughed.

"Yes, she did." He said, and I glared at him.

"I'm not dramatic!" They all laughed, and I rolled my eyes. Annie yelled out each time Abby got a new knot, and Ziva each time told her that it really didn't hurt. When they were finished, and Ziva braided Annie's hair back, Annie jumped off her mother's lap and ran away from the pair. I laughed at them, receiving scowls and a comb to the head. There was a knock at the door, causing us all to look up. Annie ran past our vision.

"I got it!" She yelled, swinging the door open. Suddenly, she was in my lap, shaking. Ziva got up immediately, walking over to the door. Abby and McGee stared at me, and I shook my head. I heard a deep, Israeli voice at the door, and I made a move to get up. Annie holding onto me tightly stopped my movement. The door shut again, and Abby went a looked.

"She went outside with him, why did she go outside with him? Didn't he beat her and stuff? Why is she out- they are just talking? That is all they are doing. What is she doing?" Abby rambled, and McGee quieted her with a look. She glared back at him, moving to the kitchen window to watch. I didn't move, as Annie's hold on my neck was proving me immobile.

"Whoa, what was that?" Abby said, and I finally stood up. I looked out the window just in time to see Ziva give Rivkin a hug. I tilted my head, watching as she broke away from him and shook his hand. I handed Annie to McGee, moving to the front door. I had almost put my hand on the handle when it flung open, revealing Ziva. She shut the door, and put her finger to her lip. I stood there, silent, waiting for her to move. Suddenly, she lunged at me and attacked me in a hug, wrapping her legs around my waist. I fell back against the wall, sliding down so I was sitting in the foyer, her straddling my waist. She kissed me, and I smiled.

"What?" I asked, completely confused. She kissed me again, running her hands through my hair. I moved my arms from around her waist to her neck, pulling back.

"As much as I love this position sweet checks, you gotta explain this sudden change of demeanor." I said, and she grinned. She kissed my cheek, wrapping her arms around my neck and holding me close.

"He came to say good-bye." She said, and I looked at her hair.

"Why?" I played along, and I could feel her smiling.

"He is going back to Tel Aviv. He said that, after talking with Annie and seeing how much she loved me, he does not want to take me away from my daughter. Or the man that loves me. He will tell my father that I disappeared, and that there is no need to try to find me. He had separation papers." She explained, and I felt my heart flutter. I pulled her face back, so I was looking into her eyes, and saw small happy tears threatening to fall. I kissed her cheek, wrapping my arms around her shoulders. She rested her head on my chest, taking a deep breath.

"So that means, no more issues? You're official single?" I asked, and she laughed.

"Tony, I have not been single since you asked me on a date eleven years ago. Technically, I am engaged." She said, and I smiled at her. She pulled her necklace chain out of her shirt, where she had put her ring before we drove to Rivkins house. She let the ring fall into her hand, holding it out to me. I took it from her, giving her a look.

"What?" I asked, and she pointed to the ring. I tilted my head, and then I smiled.

"Ziva David, will you do me the pleasure of saying yes again to my proposal?" I asked, receiving a chuckle, laugh, and excited squeal from the kitchen. Before I knew what was happening, Annie was sitting in between Ziva and I. She grabbed the ring, holding it up in Ziva's face.

"I'm never going to see Harry again?" She asked, wide eyed and excited. I couldn't help the laugh that came up from my chest, and before I knew it laughter was echoing throughout the house. Abby and McGee moved out of the kitchen, McGee's arm around Abby. She looked close to tears.

"Never again will you see Harry." Ziva said though laughs. She took the ring, slipping it onto her finger. Annie squealed again, wrapping her arms around Ziva and tackling her to the ground. Her legs unwound from around me, and they rolled around on the ground. Finally, Ziva sat up, holding Annie close to her chest.

"Is that a yes mommy?" Annie asked, and Ziva looked at me. I didn't have to hear it to know, and she bent down to whisper in Annie's ear. Suddenly, Annie started to laugh loudly, and I knew that my daughter would never be more excited in her life. Well, the part of her life she could remember. I crawled over to them, wrapping my arms around the most important women in my life.

"I love you." I whispered to both of them.

"I love you too." They said simultaneously.

* * *

**So, this chapter came to me in a spark while washing dishes. I had half of this typed, and I was like, I really need to finish this. So, with a LOT of push from Heygirlhey547, I finished. The next chapter will be the LAST chapter, I am SURE! See, I've had the idea for the last chapter in my head for the longest time. :)**

**I'd love to get to 300 reviews. It would make my day, like you wouldn't believe. This guy gave me a massage at the market, and it left me in pain. I guess that not right, so at the moment I am nursing a sore spot on my neck. 300 reviews would make that go away. **

**Next chapter is the last. Reviews, and I'll try to pump it out before school starts on Thrusday, the 19th. Crap.**

**-Izzy.**


	14. Epilouge: Just To See You Smile

**Disclaimer: I never had, never will, own anything amazing. I mean, little ole me owning something amazing? I highly doubt it. Besides, who would want to sell something like NCIS To me? No one with a brain, that is for sure. Hahehehehea;lkjd damn.**

* * *

Annie bounded across the grass area, her pink and purple dress held in her hands. She didn't like the dress, because it constricted her movement. As she finally reached where she was supposed to be, she let her dress drop. The noise level of the people around her was high, but she didn't mind. Today was a wonderful day. Weaving her way through the crowd, she was constantly smiled at and occasionally someone would pat her head. She glared at those people, really wishing that they would stop the constant touching of her head. When she finally got to where her mother and father sat, hands linked, a smile broke out on her face.

It was a beautiful day.

* * *

Annie jumped up into my lap, her dress bunching up. I smiled at her, wrapping my free arm around her waist.

"Birthday girl." I said, and she grinned at me. Her hair was flowing freely down her back, a chain of flowers around her head. Her hair was shining in the sun, as today Ziva had straightened it after much persuasion. Ziva's hair was straight as well, but wasn't flowing freely. I didn't mind though.

"There are a lot of people here daddy." Annie said, reaching across me and kissing Ziva's cheek. Ziva smiled at her daughter, picking her out of my grasp.

"That's because everyone wanted to be here." Ziva explained, and Annie rolled her eyes. She jumped down off Ziva's lap, moving to where Gibbs stood with Jenny. I shook my head at her.

"She's happy." I said, and Ziva laughed.

"Under all that sarcasm and drama?" She teased, and I shook my head. Two hands clasped on my shoulders, and I looked up in time to see Abby's black hair surrounding me.

"This is a great day!" Abby squealed, and I saw Ziva flinch. She hadn't been around Annie long enough to be immune to squealing.

I didn't know if I was saddened or happy about that.

"We know Abby." I said, and she bounced on her feet. She sat down next to Ziva, and suddenly her hand wasn't in mind. I watched as the two started to talk. I turned to McGee, but he was already gone. Deciding it was time to walk around, I got up.

After much discussion, and a couple playful hits on Annie's part, the location for today's party had been easy. I had been out numbered, and soon Gibbs was called. His backyard was the biggest and most secluded place we knew of, but at the same time, it was open enough to have a party for an eight year old. Annie was overjoyed to know that she was having a huge birthday party. She had eagerly invited all of her friends, and their parents. Parents of kids in other grades were coming, just because they had heard the whole story. I had invited old friends, and was surprised when they not only seemed excited, but offered to help.

Making my way to the drinks, Jeanne waved at me. I grabbed two waters before walking over to where she stood, next to her boyfriend.

"Tony, this is a mad house! I'm surprised the adults are dealing with all of these kids." Jeanne said, and I shrugged.

"Half of the adults here either love Annie, or have kids who are friends with Annie." I laughed as a kid ran between my legs, followed by two more. Annie grabbed my hand as she ran past, her laughter echoing as she held her dress off her legs. She had argued that she wasn't going to just sit around at the party, and that she should be allowed to wear jeans. Ziva refused.

"Annie really is a cute kid." Jeanne's boyfriend, Kevin I believe, said. I nodded, watching as she ran past Gibbs. Gibbs stopped her, bending down and kissing her cheek.

"Tony, can I get a hand?"

I turned away from Jeanne and Kevin, smiling as Ziva waved me over to where she stood. I walked up the back porch stairs, entering the quiet house. I smiled at Ziva as I saw that her dress was halfway zipped up. I walked over behind her, placing my hands on her waist. She smiled at me, covering my hands with hers.

"You looked pretty in the other dress." I said in her ear, and she shrugged.

"It was purple. This one is white." She said, and I sighed. Reaching for the zipper, I smiled at the faint scar on her back. It was the last one that was visible. All of the scars on her legs had faded, after some time in the sun and lotion. I zipped the dress up, wrapping my arms around her when I finished.

"You look great." I whispered, kissing her cheek. She put her hands on my arms, settling back into my chest. I nibbled on her neck softly.

"We can leave now, and I think Annie will distract them." I whispered, and she shook her head.

"Tony, it is also our party." She said, pushing my arms off her and walking away. I watched her walk out the door, and Lee smile at her. I followed her out the door, receiving a head slap from Gibbs.

"Ouch. What?" I asked, and he pointed to Ziva's neck. I grinned at Gibbs, feeling suddenly smug.

"You do realize Gibbs, that you can't smack me for that anymore." I said, and Gibbs rolled his eyes.

"You do remember I can fire you in an instant." He reminded me, and I grinned.

"I'd be fine."

"Oh?"

"Yup. I'd still be married and have my wife and daughter by my side." I said with a grin, and Gibbs smacked the back of my head. But this time, he smiled slightly.

"You better be happy about that." Gibbs said just as Ziva walked over to where we stood.

"Be happy about what?" She asked, and Gibbs turned away. I wrapped my arm around her waist, kissing her softly.

"Who said anything about being happy?" I asked. Before she could answer, Annie tugged on my jeans.

"Daddy, I need you to help me." She said, and I looked down at her.

"With what sweet heart?" I asked, picking her up. She glared at me.

"No one can burst the piñata." She said, and I grinned.

"Ziva, you're an expert at piñata smashing, aren't you?" I asked, and Annie looked at her mother. Ziva smirked at me, grabbing Annie from my arms.

"Yes, I am." She said, and they disappeared. I watched from the porch as Annie spun Ziva in a circle before letting her swing at the piñata. As the cardboard figure smashed, and kids laughed and lunged at the candy, I smiled. After Ziva pulled her blindfold off, she winked at me.

"Hey Tony! How's if feel to be married?" Jimmy Palmer, a friend of Abby's, asked me. I watched Ziva and Annie get into a candy fight, and smiled wider.

"It feels great."

* * *

**So, if you haven't gotten it, this takes place on Annie's birthday, which is also a couple days after Tony and Ziva finally get married. Based on the timeline I made, this happens in November. That's the basic time line, and explanation.**

**Okay, well. That's it. The end. Last chapter. Epilouge. End. Resolution. I can't remember the word I leanred in English class last year that means Resolution. Whatever though. ****Thanks a BUNCH for reviewing, and making this little baby fic one of my favorites. Thanks soo much. **

**I don't reallly think I have another idea, because school is starting, but I might keep writing oneshots while school is going on. I know that next summer, I'll have more stories in store for you. But, for now, oneshots and one shot series. If I get another idea for a oneshot series. Maybe some prompts, and help from others. I might also write episode tags, if I'm feeling creative and I see the episode. :) I can't wait for S7. **

**REVIEW! Hey, it's the last chapter. Doesn't mean you just NOT review! You review because you are happy and satisfied and sad it's over. Like me, hence the rambling. I'll shut up now. :)**

**Thanks, again. -Izzy.**


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